


Reborn in the Fade

by The_giraffe



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: In the Fade, Mage Trevelyan (Dragon Age), Modern Boy in Thedas, Modern Character in Thedas, Multi, OC is aware of the Plot, Scientist explores the fade, Scientist in Thedas, Solas is Fen'Harel (Dragon Age), Starts before conclave, Starts before the Kirkwall rebellion, The Fade, The great Quest of going Home, Warning for profanity, Wisdom (Dragon Age) - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:20:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 24,596
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25133788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_giraffe/pseuds/The_giraffe
Summary: John is a scientist who might be too passionate for light and microfabrication. Witness as he tries to make sense of what has become of him after a tragic and traumatic event results in him being in an unforeseen situation.Paired with a new curious friend, John will have to grow and adapt to an environment his analytical mind struggles to comprehend in order to survive.Will he succeed in finding a renewed purpose in life and will he be able to make a difference in the story that he knows will unfold?
Relationships: Male Inquisitor/Cassandra Pentaghast, Original Male Character/Dorian
Comments: 15
Kudos: 89





	1. A long needed vacation.

A bright flash, a loud noise, the smell of burnt rubber, a sharp pain, the tangy taste of blood, and then… nothing. 

* * *

John is standing on a beach. He doesn’t know how he got there, all he knows is that he just is. The brine wets his feet and there is sand in his clothes. The breeze carries with it wafts of seaweed that invade his nostrils. ‘Just like home…’ 

Standing up, he gathers his surroundings. There is no one around, the luminosity of the environment and position of the Sun suggests that the time is near midday and a light fog permeates the beach in an odd green tint. Weirder yet, he is in full lab apparel. The white cleanroom gown is on along with the hood, face net, the rubber sole clip-on boots, and a pair of nitrile gloves. 

‘Not my first choice for a bathing suit’. A weird feeling of lethargy wears at John, like a breathlessness that doesn’t instill panic but eats away at one’s thoughts, as if the ability to fear and reason were too energy-consuming be bothered with. He can’t help but feel that something is wrong, but can’t seem to focus on what. 

With no civilization in sight, he begins stumbling along the shoreline, one heavy foot after another to the rhythm of the crashing waves. Eventually, the weariness wins out, John falls to his knees, lays down, and falls to sleep. Until a young voice roused him awake: 

Someone nudged his shoulder. “Hey, wake up”. 

“Huh?” 

“You really shouldn’t be here it’s dangerous, you know?” 

John opens his eyes and before him stands a child, a translucent yellow child. With a bizarrely apathetic voice, John asks: “Are you a hologram?” 

“No, I'm Curiosity. What’s a hologram?” 

“Curiosity? Does that stand for something?” 

“Not that I know of… What’s a hologram!?” 

“Oh… Holography is a photographic technique that records the light scattered from an object and then presents it in a way that appears three-dimensional. This representation is called a hologram.” 

“WOW, What!? How does that happen!? What’s photography!? Can you show me!?” 

“Hey, easy there. Guess I know why you’re Curiosity, now.” 

Curiosity turns a questioning look onto John, the change in disposition making it seem somehow older. 

“Why aren’t you afraid? Humans are usually afraid, or cold, but not…void…” 

“You know, I’m asking that myself. I’ve been feeling off since I … arrived here?” ’Wherever _here_ even is’. 

A look of understanding passed Curiosity's expression. “Oh, I think I know what’s wrong, he’s feeding off you!” 

“Are you claiming I have parasites?” John retorted with a stone face. ‘What am I even saying?’. 

“Ha! No! The calm with which you said that was kind of funny though.” Curiosity flashed John a cheeky smile. ”The monster that dwells here has nested in you, somehow? He’s feeding off your memories and energy and that has altered how you feel, act and think… I think…” 

“What do you mean monster? Is this why I feel so down?” 

“Yeah. I mean, probably? It’s how it feels, I guess.” Curiosity replied coyly. 

“Somehow I’m not reassured…” was the deadpan response. 

“Don’t worry! I think I can help. I will kind of…pull away from the connection… yeah. And then you should be back to normal. The monster will probably know though.” 

“You don’t’ seem very sure. What does the monster 'knowing' mean?” 

Curiosity grinned. “It means leaving may get… tricky. Also, it’s not like you have that much of a choice, right?” 

John sighed in exasperation and rose a brow towards Curiosity. “Cheeky aren’t you? Ok then let’s do it.” 

“Alright! Let me warn you though, returning to normal will probably freak you out. Now sit down so I can reach your head” 

John sat on the sand and stared at Curiosity, despite the malaise he was under he couldn’t help but feel some interest towards the mystifying creature before him. Curiosity reached its small translucent hand to John’s forehead and closed its eyes. John could sense a contagious excitement from Curiosity which reminded him of his days in the lab, the excitement of trying something new. 

Curiosity grabbed at something in John’s mind and pulled it and stretched it until it snapped. Suddenly John was overwhelmed. All emotions that seemed so far away moments ago crashed down on him. 

“Oh my god! What the fuck is happening!? “Fear. Fear and confusion were all he knew at this moment, 

“Hey, calm down! It’s okay. You’re scaring me…” Clearly, for all its cheek and bravado, Curiosity did not expect such a strong response. 

“Scaring you!? What even are you!? A ghost? Oh my god, am I a ghost!?” 

“Hum, no, you are not… Come on, deep breaths now.” 

John tried to get a grip, he hugged his knees and hid his head between them, grappling with his breathing in hopes of avoiding spiraling into a panic attack. He counted backward from ten and focused on getting his bearings. He was in an unknown place without any memory of how he got to this beach, he was talking to something he was almost positive was a ghost somehow and worst of all… he remembered dying. ‘Ok John, focus, priorities first, existential crisis second.” 

“You seem better, are you ok?” John took in the image of curiosity in detail for the first time, it was definitely childlike with a young expression and small in stature. It was hard to attribute a gender to it, neither the face, body shape nor voice were decidedly male or female, not that gender seemed particularly relevant for a ghost. 

John was capable of mounting a reply, not without trepidation in his voice, however. “I think so, what are you? Where am I?” 

“Oh boy... I’m Curiosity… And we're in the lazy monster’s place. We should really leave” 

The oddly garbed man couldn’t help but sigh. ‘Of course, I guess expecting a non-obtuse answer was too much to ask…’. 

“If it’s dangerous then why come here and how did you even find me?” 

“I told you, I’m Curiosity. I felt curiosity in you, but it was weird, it was muted? Kind of? Turns out it was the monster that was eating at you. Now that you’re free again, he’s probably mad.” 

John’s tick started acting out again as he pulled at the gloves, stretching the rubber in a satisfying way that lured Curiosity’s gaze. “I take it that’s a bad thing. We should leave then, what’s the plan?” 

“Good news is the fog is gone and we can reach the exit, over there” Curiosity pointed to across the beach’s dunes, where a large hotel was now fully visible. “Bad news is, that’s the only way out and that’s where the monster must be.” 

“What do you mean by a monster, exactly?” Given the existence of the seemingly actual ghost in from of him, the thought of discovering what constituted a monster wasn’t very compelling. 

“Well, he’s big and ugly, lazy too. And he eats off you, someone like me wouldn’t, not without permission at least. What are you even wearing by the way? I’ve never seen humans with clothes like these.” 

‘Charming…’“This is my cleanroom suit, it’s designed to protect the cleanroom from getting contaminated by dust particles and hairs because they get in the way of the microfabrication processes and experiments” 

“Coooooooooool….What’s a cleanroom?” 

Curiosity was oddly endearing and, in a way, familiar. “Haha, think of it as a room where the air only flows down and it has as little dust as possible.” 

“Oh okay, that suit can’t be comfortable here though. “ 

“That’s true, my boots are soggy and there’s sand in my underwear, but it’s all I have with me for the moment. I don’t even know why I am wearing this” 

Confusion settled into Curiosity. ”You’re wearing that because it’s probably familiar. Why don’t you think some new clothes into reality to get comfier?” 

And apparently confusion as contagious because John had no clue what that meant. “You got to be a bit more specific for me bud, I’m not sure we’re talking the same language here” 

“I can speak whatever language you speak, I can hear their meaning off you and you are very loud. About the clothes, just… think them into existence, that’s kind of how it works, no?” Curiosity replied as if it wasn’t asking him to perform a miracle. 

What the spirit said alarmed him. “I thought you said you wouldn’t eat off my memories like the monster!” 

“I’m not, I’m just listening in, not that I need to listen very hard. As I said, your thoughts are very loud, it seems the monster was trying to hide you. Interesting.” 

“Oh…Ok. Sorry? So about the clothes I just… think about what I would want to ware?” 

“Yeah. Well, you have to really focus on it and want it” 

‘Am I really going to fall for this?’ “Let’s go for it, I guess”. Seeing no harm in following the childlike apparition’s seemingly innocuous advice, John closed his eyes and began concentrating. He imagined something simple, an orange T-shirt, swimming trunks, and slippers. Casual beachwear. Suddenly he felt the sunlight hit his skin and the breeze caress his skin. Upon opening his eyes he realized he was no longer in his labware and was now exactly in the clothes he imagined, ‘This is crazy! I’ve gone crazy! I’m talking to ghosts and now I have serious delusions of godhood!’ 

“Come on, take another deep breath,” said the too knowing spirit. 

“All right… I’m ok…” Taking one last moment to focus and ignoring all the impossible questions, for now, John turned towards the hotel. “So that’s the way out. Let’s get going then.” 

* * *

The travel to the hotel took longer than it should, almost as if by magic the distance between them and their destination kept expanding. The combination of the foreign feelings experienced until now and the stress John had endured almost made him want to stop in face of this seemingly endless task. He might have given up, were it not for Curiosity’s multitude of questions and intermissions distracting him along the way. 

The transition between the beach and the resort hotel was sudden. On one side you had long sand dunes with coastal flora and the ocean on the horizon, on the other side, separated by tall, lush, green bushes was the colossal yellow building with glass pane balconies. A stone-paved walkway connected the gates to the hotel entrance, passing a large blue pool along the way. The most bizarre aspect of it was how normal it all appeared to be. Hotel guests were walking around in all manner of casual and swimwear, mingling, eating, and swimming as if nothing was wrong with the world. 

Curiosity was taking the scenery in, fascinated by the new surroundings. “They’re not real.” 

“What?” 

“They’re memories, from you. Not real people.” 

Closer inspection proved Curiosity correct as he could recognize several people he had seen at several points in his life. Lucy from the bakery, Tomas from work, Karen from accounting, Bill from that conference in Spain, and many others. It seemed whoever put this hotel here had populated it with people from John’s memories. 

A man’s head rose above the pool’s water level and called out to John. “John, hey man, over here!” It was Anthony, his childhood friend from his hometown. Anthony turned a big carefree grin to John. “Come on in! The water’s fine!” 

It had been years since he last was with Anthony ‘Whatever happened to you, Anthony?' For some reason, John was strangely compelled to join his friend, even knowing that he wasn’t real. 

Worriedly, Curiosity tried to grab John’s attention by taking hold of his hand. “Careful now, we’re getting closer to the monster’s den so his influence is stronger, it’s best if we stay on track.” 

Focusing on the only thing that has kept hi grounded so far, John gently squeezed Curiosity’s hand and let it lead the way. “Where are we headed?” 

The yellow spirit pointed towards the sky. “Lookup there. Can you see that?” Above them stood a sight that defied John’s understanding of the world. The sky was ripped open, like a tear in fabric with a green hue emanating from it. 

‘This is fucked up.’ John couldn’t look away from the horrifying visage. “What is that!?” 

“That’s our way out. We’ll need to go through the building to reach it, all the way up”. 

They kept marching to the hotel entrance, avoiding all the tempting invitations to just relax and unwind issued to John along the way. The entrance itself was at a breezy, air-conditioned temperature with servants moving to and fro tending to the needs of people who were… ‘laying on the ground?’. The floor was littered with guests lazing about, eating food, or simply sleeping. 

Curiosity worriedly tugged at John’s hand. “This is bad. It seems the monster has grown strong.” 

John started pulling Curiosity to the lifts “We should take the elevator, it’s the fastest way up.” 

“No! The monster will know where we’re going that way, if we take the stairs we may be able to leave without him noticing.” 

The idea of climbing around 30 flights of stairs made John breathless just thinking about it, but the ghost did have a point. If the monster held control over the Hotel the elevator cameras would alert him to their position.”Fine… It’s a long way up though.” 

The pair bolstered itself, took a deep breath, and begun their climb. Midway through Curiosity, as expected by now, asked a question. 

“Why do people come here?” 

“What, like, to hotels and the beach? To relax I suppose. It’s good to unwind sometimes.” 

“And they just lay around all day?” 

“Well…no. Not that much at least, you shouldn’t take this exaggerated portrait of a vacation made out of my memories as a proper representation of the… real world?” 

“What makes your world more real mine?” 

“…Touché. What do we do once we reach the top? Do we just…jump out of here?” 

“We run. We run fast.” Was the disconcertingly serious response. 

They kept going until they reached a rusty red door that led to the roof. 

Gathering all the courage within him, John took a deep breath and grabbed onto the door handle. “When I open this door, we just sprint the hell out of here, ok?” The yellow spirit, now seemingly paler than before, nodded its consent. Turning the door handle and slamming the passage open, both of them broke out into a mad dash towards the big glowing green orb in the middle of the roof, only for something to tightly grasp John’s ankle and fling him back towards the roof access point. 

Before them now stood a most grotesque creature. Humanoid in stature, if a bit hunched, with grey deformed skin pulled over its face and covered in a ratty garb, the monster made for a horrifying sight. 

The thing opened its twisted mouth and released an utterance with a hideously gravelly voice. “You have strayed from your resting spot little one.” 

John’s bafflement and fear were renewed tenfold. ”What the fuck even are you!?” 

“I am Sloth and I have been here longer than you have drawn breath. Many have tried to understand what I am, but such knowledge is beyond the comprehension of the fleshed ones. You may not be of the flesh any longer, but you are just as foolish. For the first time, a meal has come to me, your capacity for idiocy surely knows no bounds.” 

Standing up on shaking knees, John's eyes begin darting for a way out, noticing Curiosity is nowhere in sight “What do you want from me?” 

The Demon stretched its arms, gloating at the fear and attention. “It is regrettable, but there is something that only your kind can achieve. The creation of new memories and the sensations of what’s tangible, that is what I seek, I want your existence.” 

“Yeah, sorry but I don’t see that happening.” ‘Just keep it talking, come on…’ John started shimmying along the wall, hoping that an opportunity to run would present itself. 

“Foolish human, you never had a choice in the matter.” Suddenly John felt as if underwater, the malaise at the beach a joke compared to the weariness he was now experiencing, a feverish sensation overtook him, like cotton clogging his ears. He could swear there were whispers of a gravelly voice at the back of his mind. 

Apathy returned to John, driving him to his knees. ‘This is the end, I will tire no more’ 

A sweeter voice entered his mind “You have to remember.” It was curiosity, still nowhere in sight. 

“You have to remember it. What makes you get out of bed every day?” 

“My…My job…” 

“And what drove you to your job?” 

“Science is fun… the thing that drove me to it was… curiosity!” 

“And was fun enough?” 

At this point, John's head began aching. “Enough? No, it took… discipline.” 

A visceral bellow ringed throughout the area. “NOOOO! STOP!” Sloth was in agony, the light was being spewed off cracks in his skin and his features were twisting. 

“It took discipline, even when things were wrong, even when it felt like I wasn’t going to make it in time. I had to keep at it every day, even when it wasn’t fun, even when I was tired!” 

“STOP!!” The demon’s shrieking came to an end and he exploded in a burst of light, leaving a deep blue apparition, taller that Curiosity, in his stead. The yellow spirit took this as its cue re-appear. 

Curiosity’s amazement could not be overstated. “You did it, that’s crazy, I didn’t think that would work!” 

That was perhaps the most affronting thing John faced in this experience so far. “You little shit! You brought me here without even knowing we would make it out!?” 

In typical Curiosity fashion, this only served to put a grin on its face. “Sorry. But this is the only way out anyway, as I said, we had no real choice.” 

The new apparition moved closer. “And I am thankful you did. Greetings, I am Discipline, and I must thank you for changing my purpose” 

John’s lifted eyebrow makes a reappearance. “In English please.” 

“Your life and memories were genuine and your passion heartfelt. These feelings held power and they turned me from Sloth to Discipline. Somehow I was not destroyed in the process. You have my utmost gratitude.” 

‘Discipline seems all right…A bit formal. Such a contrast from the monster trying to kill me.’ “Ok… huh, cool? Can we leave?” 

“Your hesitation is understandable, of course, take your leave I have much work ahead of me tidying this place up. If you are ever in need of assistance, please don’t hesitate to call upon me.” 

“Ok, then... Curiosity, are you ready to go?” 

“Yeah, I think we’ve had enough excitement for the day and you probably have some questions too. It is only fair I give you some answers of my own.” 

The pair said their goodbyes to their new ally and made a move to the portal. Finally, after stumbling like he was a zombie through a beach he had no idea how he got to, being forced to face a world drawn from his own mind where things made no sense and facing a horrifying monster, John took a step closer to finding out what has happened to him. 

In unison they jumped, the green vortex opened up, swirled, and twisted them into it resulting in the feeling of being squished into too tight of a space. Coming out on the other side, John’s situation became much clearer to him whilst simultaneously raising many more questions. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you have read this initial chapter, thank you. I have been reading fanfiction for over 8 years now and decided to try and make my own story.
> 
> I chose to start with Dragon Age: Inquisition because I am a big fan of the game and its what I've been reading latelly.
> 
> Regarding the relationships, I only have the first 5 chapters planned so I haven't even considered it yet. I am tempted to go for no relationships right now, but we'll see.
> 
> I'm not going to compromise with a schedule because i cannot. My availability and desire to write fluctuate, But I'll make an effort to keep posting. 
> 
> I want to think of this as my way of giving back to a medium of expression which gives me counteless hours of entertainment.
> 
> I have made some fixes to the text. Little typing errors and poor grammar.


	2. Living the Dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter John understands his new reality, engages Curiosity in the search for answers and, together with his spirit friend, embarks on a quest to find a way back home.
> 
> In the first step of their quest John and Curiosity meet someone that will play an important role in their future.

The green vortex spewed John and Curiosity both onto a hard-rocky floor. “Oof, that stings!”. Lifting his head and taking in his surroundings John froze. Around them were floating rocks of all shapes and size, the skies presented a slew of colors like an aurora borealis and the air itself was abnormal, refracting light in different ways for no apparent reason. Gravity pulled in many directions, up was down and the space was decidedly non-Euclidean. Spirits popped in and out of existence in the far distance and many portals like the one they just took peppered the scenery. 

For the first time since this mad adventure had begun, John had now an inkling of what his situation was, and this new impossible reality defies all logic and comprehension the outworlder could possibly muster. “I’m in a video game... I'm in a fucking video game!” 

Everything was clearer now, from the demons to the visions, to making thought reality. He was in the Fade, the magical dreamland from the Dragon Age game series, a world which was very much not real to him a day ago. This realization brought with it a fresh wave of nausea, fear, and confusion. After all, recognizing the reality he was in didn’t lighten the blow of how impossible it seemed. 

Beginning to recognize John’s tells, Curiosity took his hand once more. “Hey, it’s ok, we’re safe here.” 

John was breaking into a cold sweat, he sounded so meek at this instant. “This is impossible...How can this be...?” 

“This is my home. Your kind calls it the Fade but it seems you already know that. I also believe I owe you some answers. Do you have any questions?” 

John jumped at the opportunity to make sense of this new world, lest he loses what’s left of his sanity. “Can you tell me where this place is, Curiosity?” 

“Oh! That’s kind of a hard one. Let’s see... There’s a here, right? And there is also a there, where you’re from, but the here and there are the same places while at the same time not... Like a shadow. Did that make sense?” 

‘Oh god, my head is spinning.’ “You're not making any sense! How can you confirmedly be and not be in one place at the same time?” 

“Imagine here and there are two levels in a building. Both are built in the same land, but one is above the other, except, in the Fade, it's not above or below, both are in a direction your kind can’t see or walk, but for the most part it’s the same spot, the same lot of land.” 

Memories of vector calculus flashed back to the forefront of John’s mind. It seems professor Hanna’s classes on multidimensional vector operations were about to pay off. “Wait a minute. Are you saying there is an additional dimension, or direction as you said, and to reach the Fade you need to move in that direction, but humans can’t? Like all of the non-Fade world is on a single level in this ‘building’ and there are no stairs or elevator into the Fade?” 

A look a joy and wonder overtook Curiosity’s expression, a soothing chime of tiny bells emanating from it. “That’s it! Except for its not just one direction, it is many. It can be easy to get lost here.” 

‘Duly noted...’ This new and magical world was beginning to awake the scientist within John, questions bubbling in his thoughts. “You wouldn’t happen to know how this place came to be, would you?” 

“As far as I know, the Fade has always existed, it comes before everything. Some spirits, however, would argue that your question doesn’t make sense because the Fade does not care for time, space, or whether we exist or not. Older spirits would probably tell you that Fade transcends such things.” 

Despite the mysteriousness of the fade, the way Curiosity phrased its answer made him remind of something with a similar property. ‘It is just like mathematics, it exists regardless of time, space, and whether someone is there to discover it or not.’ 

“The way you said that makes me feel you don’t quite agree.” 

Taking John’s sentence for the question it was Curiosity elaborated on its answer. “It’s not that I disagree, it’s that I’ve met old spirits which have very assuredly claimed opposite and contradictory things. I don’t take all that they say as absolute truth.” A sly smile bloomed on its face” I am quite curious about what the actual truth is. Maybe one day we’ll find out or maybe it was never meant to be discovered, though I hope not, it seems like a really cool thing to know.” 

As fascinating as the yellow spirit’s thoughts and his predicament were, it was time to get back on track. John’s next question took on a more serious tone.” Please Curiosity, do you know a way for me to go back home?” 

“Oh. That I don’t know, I’ve tried leaving before but I could never find a way to exit the Fade. No way that wouldn’t change me or would require taking someone’s flesh at least, but I know someone who might be able to find you a way home! Her name is Wisdom!” the way Curiosity mentioned Wisdom indicates that it is someone he has great trust towards. “She knows all sorts of things! And she has always been willing to answer my questions. Others here are not always so nice. I've asked her before how to leave, but could never get a clear answer, probably because me leaving the Fade is most likely not the wisest course of action, regardless of how cool it would be. Regardless, you are a different case. She might be willing to tell you since, to my knowledge, humans aren’t meant to physically be in the Fade.“ 

“Oh, she’s a she. I'm sorry, I’ve been treating you by ‘it’, I don’t know what to call you by.” 

“Call me by what? Him, her? I only call wisdom ‘she’ cause that’s how she portrays herself. The only characteristic we have when we’re born here is our purpose. Some of us have been altered by exposure to your kind, sometimes some of us pick up a gender that way. This is usually a point of contention for humans... I must say you’re dealing with the recent events admirably well.” 

“Thanks... I guess I’ll keep calling you by what I’ve been calling you then...” John was uncertain about this decision. Despite Curiosity’s ghost-like aspect, treating it by ‘it’ seemed cruel, but who was him to tell a spirit what’s right or wrong. If Curiosity identified itself by its purpose then John would comply, at least while doing so felt harmless to the spirit. 

Clearly the scientist had forgotten that his thoughts were apparently ‘loud’. “Ha-ha. You don’t need to worry about this. I am what I am and I have no shame in that.” 

Curiosity seemed very sure of who it was and that it would remain as such, but John was not so sure. ‘You may say that now, but you are Curiosity and you probably seek new things every day. New experiences change us. I wonder for how long you’ll get to be Curiosity. I hope you’ll change only for the better’ 

The yellow spirit’s smile dimmed and a soft look entered its eyes. It appears it was more aware of its fate than it seemed. “Thank you, John.” 

Curiosity truly was a charming spirit. Feeling much calmer than before, the outworlder took a deep inhalation and clapped his hands. “Ok, enough dreary talk. If Wisdom knows a way out, I want to meet her. Where do we go from here?” 

“We need to make way to Wisdom’s den. It’s a bit of a stretch but we may be able to take a shortcut through someone’s dream.” 

“That is... a terrible idea. Let's do it.” 

Curiosity grinned like a Cheshire, literally... “Ha-ha, I knew you would be fun! We just need to cross to that island over there and then I can pick a dream that’ll take us closer to Wisdom’s place. You’re good at jumping right?” The yellow spirit pointed to a large floating stone slab above and across a, hopefully not literally, bottomless abyss. Connecting the landmass where John and Curiosity landed on the floating island were several smaller hovering rocks orbiting the island. ’Reminds me of Saturn’s belt...’ 

*gulp* John turned pale and for a moment just stood there staring into the abyss. “You... want me to jump over there? Like, through the trail of rocks? What if I fall!?” 

Embodying all the nonchalance of a childlike spirit, Curiosity turned to the estranged scientist.“If you fall it won’t hurt you... You’ll just have to spend a few centuries trying to climb out of the void.” 

The misplaced human took a step back. ‘Oh, fuck no...’ 

Taking a hold onto John’s hand, Curiosity started pulling them towards the edge of the cliff. “Oh, fuck yes! Come on John don’t be chicken! I promise I won’t let you fall. It’s easier than it looks. Just make sure you remember all you need to do is focus and believe you can make that jump.” 

“Can’t we just take a long way around!?” 

“The long way will take us, like, twenty years, no joke. Now... Jump!” 

Taking the lead, Curiosity leaped a whopping ten meters to a rock floating in front of it and grabbed on. The floating monolith wobbled for a bit before the spirit took a leap onto the next platform. John took a deep breath, imagined a parabolic trajectory, and sharpened his focus on the target rock. He jumped. ‘wow...’ John had never experienced such a feeling of weightlessness. With all the elegance of a gliding falcon, john traced the trajectory he had plotted in his mind. And like this, they crossed the abyss to the floating island, John’s confidence building with every hop. When he set foot on the island, Curiosity was already waiting for him. “So, had fun?” 

John’s trepidation from the other side of the abyss was gone. Replacing it were feelings of power, amazement, and glee. “That was awesome! It's going to take some getting used to, but I think I’m starting to understand this Fade thing.” 

“I’m glad” The spirit smiled. “Ready to keep going?” 

The outworlder put his hands on his hips and looked around. “Sure. But where are we going? This island’s empty.” 

Curiosity nodded and started heading to the other side of the floating stone slab. “Space is different here. If we move further ahead, we’ll start going in one of the Fade’s different ‘directions’ and it will lead us into the nearby dream. It’s very hard to see the transition point but I can feel it, can you?” 

“Feel it?” John stopped and opened all of his senses. He paid attention to an even warmth across his skin which he was too excited to notice moments ago from the high of crossing the abyss. Unlike a breeze the warmth was static, clinging to his body, and John could feel a gradient in the direction Curiosity was walking, almost as if the heat was originating from that way. As he got nearer to this source, the heat kept increasing and John could start to see the air in front of him vibrate, causing light to refract in agitated ways. 

They kept moving forwards until the atmosphere started to look like a transparent film with small little wrinkles on it. At this point the heat was bearable but uncomfortable, feeling clammy on John’s skin. 

The yellow spirit stopped and turned to John. “We are almost there. Before we jump in, I should tell you about what we might face. Dreams are different from Sloths’ domain. Sloth’s resort was a part of the Fade where Sloth spread his influence, but it was still the fade, it belongs to all spirits that might cross that space. A dream is a part of the Fade which is temporarily bound and set by the mind of the dreamer. The exit of the dream is going to depend on the dreamer’s interpretation of what an exit is. Make sense?” 

John pensively rubbed his chin. “I guess so, that notion kind of plays into the whole make thought reality thing from before. We’ll have to meet the dreamer, right? To check for what might be the exit.” 

“Exactly! You’ll understand the Fade as well as a spirit in no time!” This fact seemed to bring joy to Curiosity, the novelty of a human that can so easily adapt to the world of spirits is bringing it no short measure of amazement. 

“Say, Curiosity, what happens if the dreamer wakes up when we’re in there?” 

For the first time in a while, hesitation seeped into the cheery yellow spirit. “That’s hard to say... I’ve had it happen a few times before. Sometimes the dream just vanishes around you and the Fade restores you to the entry point you used, as it shapes back into the form it had before the dream’s anchoring. Other times you return to the point of entry but, if the dream was eventful or evoked particularly strong emotions, the fade may be permanently altered and echoes of the dream may remain. The worst-case scenario, however, is being ejected to some random corner of the Fade. This can prove particularly treacherous, since there are some very dangerous things here that we would like to avoid, so jumping in is not without risk...” 

*sigh* “But it’s the only choice I have... I’m getting the jest of it by now.” John leaned on his newfound confidence and resumed marching forwards. “Let’s get this done.” 

* * *

As they pushed ahead, they could feel an almost rubbery film pull at them until it snapped and, in a burst of color, the world around them changed. Suddenly they fell onto the ramparts of a large castle’s walls. The scenery around them was evocative of classic English castles, made with big stone walls and surrounded by the farmsteads of whatever lord ruled these lands, bellow them was the courtyard filled with bushes, flower patches, and the occasional stone bench. Perhaps more interestingly, at the center of the courtyard by the fountain stood a young man wearing long blue robes with a short leather coat over his shoulders. The young redhead also seemed to be holding onto a fancy stick. 

This figure caused apprehension in Curiosity. “We’re in a mage’s dream, we must be extra careful. Mages are generally more aware of their dreams and they tend to dislike visitors.” 

“Well, maybe he’ll be more agreeable with me here? Me being human might make him more willing to talk with us. Plus, it’s as you say, he’s the one who knows the exit. Unless you want to risk scouring the whole castle for a way out and running out of time we have to try.” John took Curiosity’s hand and started walking to the stairs that led down to the courtyard. They then walked up behind the young mage. 

*cough cough*“Hum...How do you do?” 

The mage startled and swiftly turned around, pointing his fancy stick at us. “Demons! Stay back! I'm warning you!” 

‘That didn’t go as expected...’ Raising his hands as if someone was pointing a gun at him, John tried to calm the mage using a disarming tone. “Hey now, no reason to be up in arms. There are no demons here just me and a Curiosity spirit. And we’re just passing by. We only wanted to talk.” 

The soft wording seems to give the young man some pause. He was most likely expecting a more insidious or violent response. “Why should I trust you!?” 

Curiosity hugged the back of John’s legs in fear, small shivers coursed through it.“A Demon would be luring you with promises of fulfilling your wishes and preying on your weaknesses. We just want to ask for a way out of here.” The situation was less than ideal. John was beginning to regret the reckless attitude he took due to his sudden confidence boost. ‘I got over-eager. I really should have thought ahead a little more.’ 

The mage, no more than sixteen years old now that John could get a closer look, took a few steps back and stopped pointing the staff at them, opting to grab it with both hands and use it for support, almost like the act of grasping his staff brought him some comfort. “Do you truly mean no harm? Senior Enchanter Lydia taught us that not all spirits are evil, but they may also try to manipulate us with honeyed words.” The redhead seemed to be calming down, but he was still assuming defensive posturing. 

‘Maybe trying for a casual talk he’ll realize how human I am.’ John then looked at Curiosity.’ Or rather how human we are.’ Curiosity snapped its head to stare right into the outworlder's eyes, a new emotion blooming within it. 

“Hey, kid? What’s your name? Mine's John.” 

Clearly, the young mage was not expecting what he assumed was a spirit to have such a common name. “John? I have two cousins named John. Ha! How can something from the Fade have such a banal name?” 

This paved a familiar conversation topic for the misplaced scientist. “Ha-ha, trust me I get that a lot... The so and so from my family is also a John part, not the... Fade something part... So, what’s your name, kid?” 

There was still some fear and distrust in the mage before them, but assuming a prime and proper posture, ‘Kid must be a noble...’, the young man looked John in the eye and answered: 

“My name is Maxwell Trevelyan, of the Trevelyan noble house of Ostwick, pleased to make your acquaintance.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed the new chapter! :)


	3. A gilded cage is still a cage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this new entry of Reborn in the Fade, John has his first contact with a Thedosian human, who just so happens to be a familiar figure to many of us. He also gets the opportunity to situate himself in the time frame of the Dragon Age games as well as make a new friend along the way.
> 
> Notation: I believe you've probably realized by now but the notation I'm using is:
> 
> "Verbal Dialogue"  
> 'Thought'  
> Italic: Singing/Chanting/quoting

John’s jaw fell and his eyes stretched wide open. 'You have got to be kidding me... Of all the people, of all the dreams, of all possible unlikely encounters, the very first human I run into is the Herald of Andraste, twerp version?!’ All of his cool flew out the window leaving him speechless. To make matters worse, Curiosity tilted its head and, in typical Curiosity fashion, without reserve asked: “He’s a Herald to Andraste?” 

*Crickets* ‘Goddammit. Curiosity now’s not the time go over this. These loud thoughts thing is getting unnerving.’ An odd silence nested in the courtyard and young Trevelyan was getting progressively more uncomfortable. ‘OK bud, follow my lead, ok? And try to act...natural. Let’s play into the whole noble thing.’ Both the spirit and the outworlder stood a little straighter and tried to act composed...well, at least John did. 

*cough* Mustering all of his courteousness, John leaned in a short bow. “I apologize, my lord, we were not expecting to encounter someone of your stature. Allow me to introduce you to my friend, Curiosity.” 

With a shy smile, a cherub’s face, and a mischievous look in its eye that seemed to go unnoticed by Trevelyan, Curiosity raised its hand and waved a shy hello to the ginger mage. “Hi...” 

Unfortunately, it seemed the exceedingly formal tone had produced an adverse reaction, as the young noble cringed away from them. At least this kind of interaction seemed like the familiar ground to him, the familiarity of the situation masking his fear, despite the discomfort. “Heavens, even demons come to bother me about my family in my dreams... Listen, I'll have you know that I’m not exactly on good terms with my clan Mr. Demon. If you simply must have dealings with my family you should take it up to them.” 

‘Hmm... I think I can work with this.’ Relaxing his posture and taking a laxer stance, the outworlder plastered a Duquesne smile on his face. “Oh... well then... First of all, we’re not Demons and my name really is John, cool? Second, it was not our intention to bother you, we’re just passing by. But what’s this about your family?” 

At first, Trevelyan gave his unwanted visitors the side-eye, but his frustrations had been mounting, and without someone to vent to other than Senior Enchanter Lydia, who add already made her stance clear regarding his situation, he has been feeling constantly irritated and kept lashing out at the other young magi at the circle who did him no wrong. He began pacing to the right and back. “My relationship with my parents has been deteriorating ever since I’ve entered the circle when I was 12 years old, mother Esme’s smile turned from loving to pity and father has stopped visiting altogether, like I am a disappointment as if I had a choice in my magical talents. To add to this, I’ve been locked in the circle for years now and the constant scrutiny and templar supervision is starting to grate at my patience, you’d think we’re demons with the way some of them look at us.” *sigh* “I know we have it easy at Ostwick, that the templars that get rough with us are from places where magic is even less tolerated and that my birth as nobility grants me certain freedoms and comforts within the circle, but a gilded cage is still a cage. I wish I could see more of what’s outside. If only my mentor Lydia could understand this...” 

John and Curiosity got progressively more pensive and Maxwell’s tirade went on. ‘Poor kid has had it rough’ Curiosity took the scientist's hand. 

Windchimes and Curiosity’s voice sang from all around him. ‘Hey John, can you help him? He seems sad.’ 

John dry swallowed at the unwanted intrusion. ‘…Please tell me you didn’t just talk in my head...’ 

Wincing from his new friend’s startled reaction, the yellow spirit coyly tried to apologize. '...Sorry... I'll give you a heads-up next time?’ 

Deciding to postpone the eminent psychological crisis of having actual voices in his head and what it might mean for his sanity, John opted to tone down the angst. “I get it, kid. You feel slighted and that you’re being punished for something you didn’t do. It sucks and it's unfair, but you know what?” ‘I should probably be careful with what I say here.’ “I call tell that one day you’ll get there, you will get to travel all over Thedas.” 

Distrustful eyes glared at him. “You can’t promise that!” 

‘Time to go all in...’ With surprising confidence and honesty in his voice, John held Maxwell’s gaze and poured every ounce of his toastmaster experience into his words. “I can! Trust me, I know! One day you will be bigger than this, bigger than the circles and the templar order. Hold on to hope, your dawn will come.” He then flashed another Duquesne smile. “I promise.” 

Time seemed to stop as the ginger mage considered these strange apparitions’ words, judging their truthfulness and, sensing them to be genuine and harmless, he began to relax, until a far more subdued than John’ smile adorned his face. “You know? I might hold you to that promise.” 

Sensing he had won the kid over, John and Curiosity assumed a more casual pose and strolled nearer to the young mage. 

“And I will be honored to keep it” John extended his hand, hoping to strike a truce with Trevelyan with a handshake. To his surprise, the young noble grasped the end of his forearm instead, as one would an ally. “I don’t really know who you are, but you’ve been more of a friend than many at the circle and you don’t pity me like many from my life in Ostwick before my magic. That means something.” 

And so, a conversation was sparked with Maxwell venting his other frustrations and recalling both the good and the bad moments of life in the circle of magi, with John and Curiosity giving out some comfort and asking the occasional question. This proved to be a huge opportunity for John to situate himself in time. Apparently the fifth blight was brought to an end by a Dalish elf by the name of Lyna Mahariel who sadly passed away in the confrontation with the Arch-demon about 3 years ago, King Alistair Theirn ruled over Ferelden alongside his wife, and rumors of turmoil and increasing tension between mages and templars in Kirkwall had reached even Ostwick but the Kirkwall Rebellion was not yet in action. By the end of it all, all three of them were seated together in a line, making use of the courtyards stone benches. 

“Thank you for talking with me, even if this is all a dream, I believe I will be able to face tomorrow a little easier,” Trevelyan said. “There is still one thing though. How did you get here if you’re not a spirit?” 

Hesitation seeped into John. ‘Should I tell him?’ 

‘That’s up to you John. But I think he’s trustworthy.’ was Curiosity’s tempered response. 

The outworlder thought it unwise to reveal the existence of other worlds and how, despite being from another world, he possessed knowledge about the happenings of this one, so he settled for a half-truth. “I’m not so sure myself Max. But... I remember dying and I remember waking up here.” 

To John’s surprise, Maxwell didn’t seem frightened by the idea that he could be talking to what essentially would be someone’s ghost, instead, he became pensive, folded his hands over one another, and turned his gaze to the ground as if trying to conjure an old thought or memory. After a while he chanted: 

“ _The Light shall lead her safely_   
_Through the paths of this world, and into the next._   
_For she who trusts in the Maker, fire is her water._   
_As the moth sees light and goes toward flame,_   
_She should see fire and go towards Light._   
_The Veil holds no uncertainty for her,_   
_And she will know no fear of death, for the Maker_   
_Shall be her beacon and her shield, her foundation, and her sword_.” 

A look of wonder and faith colored Maxwell’s expression. “It’s an excerpt from the Chant of Light’s Transfigurations 10:1, describing Andraste’s ascension into the heavens through the Veil. It is also believed as per the Chant that, like Andraste, all of the maker’s followers will join him by his throne after death. Could it be that you were ascending and got lost on the way?” 

‘Oh no. I don’t like where this is going.’ The scientist wanted to frown, but to avoid hurting Maxwell’s sensibilities he made an effort to maintain a neutral face. “Listen, I'm not going to accuse you or your faith is right or wrong, but I am going to tell you that it can be a dangerous thing. Although I can’t disprove whether or not my spirit was ascending, as you put it, me being here also does not confirm the writings of the Chant of Light. You should take the Chant as allegorical, a guide for your community’s good morals if you will. This world is wild and magical, there are probably dozens of ways this could have happened that we’re not even considering here. Let’s not jump to conclusions and let's keep an open mind for now.” 

The young mage couldn’t help but get defensive. “Even after crossing the Veil as a spirit, you do not agree with the Chant of Light?” 

*Sigh* ‘It seems religious fervor can transcend even worlds’ “No, I do not see my presence here as proof of anything other than it being possible to cross the Veil after death.” ‘And cross worlds.’ He didn’t say. “However, you are perfectly welcome to your faith. In a way I admire it, faith takes a lot of passion but that passion can be dangerous if left untempered, it can consume you. A lot of good people have been led astray because of the greedy who wield their faith for their self-gain. Promise that you will keep questioning others, that you will keep trying your faith.” 

Trevelyan took another moment to reflect upon John’s words. In a way, he had never been challenged like this and yet he can’t help but feel like John is an agreeable and honest fellow. “I can stand by that. Very well, you have my word.” 

Windchimes and a bird’s chirping emanated from curiosity. “That’s very mature of you. With that attitude, you will surely grow into a good man. Hopefully, the power of questions will lead you to freedom.” 

John clapped his hands. “Moving on from the heavy topics. Is there anything else you need help with, kid?” 

“Ha! Unless you are a master of lightning magic, I don’t think you can help me much. Senior Enchanter Lydia has been drilling me for the past week but I just can’t seem to be able to control it.” It seemed Trevelyan was feeling nostalgic. When I first started studying magic, I got really excited about the idea of controlling lightning. You see, thunderstorms are rare in Ostwick, but on these special moments I would sit at my room’s window back home and just watch the lightning strike the sea and I would then count the seconds until I heard the thunder’s roar.” 

The yellow spirit took this as his cue to intervene. “And why can’t you control it?” 

“The element is just unwieldy. I point and try to push my magic in a given path but after a few seconds it becomes too hard to contain and the lightning simply refuses to follow. Senior enchanter Lydia has tried to tutor me through it, saying it has to be as swift as a dragon, as loud as a giant, and as bright the sun, but, despite this method of teaching working for some of the other students, I’m just not getting it. At this rate, I feel I’m better off just picking some other school of offensive magic.” The young man’s frustration was clear, it seems he takes failure too seriously. Perfectionism can be a useful trait, but it can also be a great source of anxiety. Sometimes it’s better to let go, however, this might be a field where John can actually be of use. 

“Lightning is a discharge of built-up electric charges in the clouds to the ground. The condition for the discharge is based on the difference of electric potential between the electrons in the clouds and the ones at land. Electric tension as large as 300000 Volts are required to ionize the air and form a plasma through which the charges can be conducted to the ground. Of course, to even reach such a condition you need a substantial electric charge build-up and for that to happen you need weather conditions such that air moisture doesn’t discharge the clouds faster than they accumulate charge.” 

Really, he should have expected the reaction. “What’s a volt?” “What was even half of what you said!?” 

‘Oh boy...’ “A volt is an intensive energy unit, energy per charge actually. Think of it as a value that sets not the total energy of your lightning but the energy each basic element that makes up the lightning. Electric charge likes to have as little energy as possible so they try to transition to lower energy states. Here they do this by moving from the high voltage position to the low voltage position whilst releasing their energy excess along the way. This energy release happens through ionization of the air, which forms a state of matter where the charges can move freely instead of being bound to the air's elemental constituents. Basically, the point is, instead of doing something so complicated like containing lightning and controlling it each step of the way, why don’t you instead build up energy and pick two points. One would be the high voltage emission point, where you built up the charge, and the second would be the low voltage point marking the target. When you successfully do that, you can try for a more complex pathing by setting more points of gradually lower voltage between the first two. Don’t try to control the lightning bolt, set it free instead.” 

Understanding bloomed in Maxwell’s face, and a giddy feeling bubbled in his chest. “Thank you! I believe I know how to pull it off now. It makes so much sense! How didn’t I think of that before?” 

John smiled and felt a tug at his hand. “Thank you for helping him, and for satisfying my curiosity, of course.” praised the yellow spirit. 

Suddenly the sun vanished, casting them in darkness, only to pop up again a second later. “What was that?!” 

Curiosity tensed and unintentionally applied a bruising grip on John’s hand. “We took too long... Max is waking up!” 

“What!? Max, quick, we need a way out. This is your dream, so tell me, what do you identify as an exit to this castle?” 

Confused by the sudden urgency Trevelyan felt flustered. "What? Why don’t you just walk out the castle gates?” 

Curiosity shifted its hold to the front of the young mage’s blue robes. “Because it would only lead us to a dream rendition of Ostwick. C’mon Trev, it's got to be personal, something you identify as an escape.” 

The young man closed his eyes and placed his hands over his head, sifting through his childhood memories for anything that would aid in his new friend's needs, until his head snapped back up and he opened his eyes. “I got it! There is a big oak tree by the west wall, I used it twice when I was feeling brave to escape the castle and go play outside.” 

“That’s it! Max, you are a great kid, and I will keep my promise. When the time comes and you are free, I will be there to help you get through your ordeal.” With these mystifying parting words, Curiosity and John began sprinting to the west side of the castle. 

They had to traverse the castle's interior to reach the outer walls, so they climbed the steps to a wooden door that connected the main wing of the building to the courtyard. John reached with his hand to push open the door, only to pass right through it and fall flat on the floor. “The fuck just happened?!” 

Curiosity grabbed him by the arm started pulling him up. “His consciousness is leaving the Fade so the dream is becoming less real. The dream’s uprooting makes some things intangible and others disappear altogether. We must hurry!” 

The ensuing rush to the west wing felt like entering a Salvador Dali painting. The surfaces were turning to greyer and browner shades than their original color and acquired a graininess to their texture. The hallways and the objects began stretching and compressing in random directions, losing their sense of shape. Finally, they made it to the end of the castle’s west wing. John grabbed a twisted chair and flung it at the room’s window, which oddly shattered into a fine blue dust. Across from them, in the garden, stood the big old oak right next to the wall. In a more peaceful time, they would have taken the time to admire the beauty of the huge tree, but that was not a luxury they could afford now. The jumped out the window and began dashing for the tree, with John panting and his legs beginning to burn from the lactic acid build-up. Due to Curiosity’s small physical stature, they opted to have it hold onto John’s back as he climbed up the wooden giant. Midway up they heard a loud crash and rumble. Behind them, the castle was falling apart. The tower had fallen, the roofs were collapsing and the walls were caving in. The percussive roar of the castle’s structural integrity failing made John double his efforts in his climb. At last, they reach the branches by the tree top, John braced himself and on the count to three makes the plunge to the top of the outer wall. 

*Huff Huff* “We’re here, what now?” 

The yellow spirit pointed downwards "Look over there! That’s the exit!” 

Right up against the other side of the wall was one the green vortexes john recognized from their escape from Sloth’s lair. The scientist took Curiosity’s hand and, in what was starting to become familiar, they jumped into the void. 

* * *

Landing back into the Fade, they could finally relax. By now John felt like had just completed a marathon. *Huff Huff* “We made it, buddy...” 

Apparently, spirits must not get tired, because Curiosity remained a bundle of energy, or maybe it was the fact that all of the heavy lifting in that climb came down to the outworlder.“Yeah. Good job John!” 

The scientist repeated the exercise of assessing his surrounding, a habit that was quickly growing on him. The scenery around them was quite different from the rugged floating rocks landscape from before. Now, the environment mimicked a clearing in a forest where the underbrush was loaded with berries and flowers. The sky, however, was still painted with bright stripes of color. At the end of the clearing flowed a waterfall into a pond that split into two small arms of water and filled the space with the soothing sound of splashing water. At the edge of that very pond sat a grey figure. They had found Wisdom. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This week was a busy one. I had to travel to a nearby city for work and it took up a lot of my free time, but I still found a moment to get some writing done. 
> 
> The Fade chapters are coming to a close as there will be either one or two more chapters. The next chapter, as it is made obvious by this one, will be centered about gaining Wisdom's guidance. After that, I will write several short and action-oriented segments denoting time skips where we get to see John interact with some important figures to the story and progress with his newfound life. 
> 
> Once I wrap the Fade chapters up, we will start with the events of the Dragon Age: Inquisition story. 
> 
> Have a good week, and stay safe :)


	4. Operation Reborn in the Fade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this very eventful addition to the Reborn in the Fade we get to meet Wisdom, make plans for the future and even explore a haunted mansion. 
> 
> Come see how John has grown and evolved from the mainly defenseless human into a far more combat capable individual. 
> 
> There is also a particularly long author's note at the end which I would appreciate input on, if you are available, of course. :)

Curiosity took the initiative and began merrily hopping towards its friend. “Hello Wisdom, how have you been?” 

The grey spirit turned around and faced her guests. As Curiosity had explained, Wisdom chose to portray herself as a fairly natural looking woman, was it not for her grey coloring and, quite literally, glowing green eyes. However, the most surprising thing about Wisdom was not her appearance but rather the fact that John recognized the spirit. 

‘Oh. She is not just a Wisdom spirit. She is _the_ Wisdom spirit.’ 

The wizened spirit smiled at the childlike one. “Hello Curiosity, I am well. It seems you are keeping an interesting company. You're not from these parts, are you Child?” Wisdom stared at the displaced scientist, her eyes piercing and far more knowing than Curiosity's. 

A chill went down John’s back. He did not expect that he would have to face so many plot-related characters so soon, especially since the templar-mage conclave was still eight years away. The ramifications of his actions now could very well throw the whole story off-course. ‘It also doesn’t help, that she’s friends with the Dread Wolf’. 

Wisdom smiled and her posture became far more disarming. She cupped the younger spirit’s face with her hands and shower it in affection. “I see you have brought me an interesting one, little seeker.” 

For the first time, John could see Curiosity truly at ease. The yellow spirit was content and carefree, far more so than when they were traveling. The Wisdom spirit was clearly someone of greater importance to Curiosity than it made seem at first. “Wisdom, we need your help. This is John, he’s not from here and his thoughts are loud! He wants to go back home. I know you don’t want me to look for ways out of the Fade, but this time I have a good reason, see?” 

It appears the admiration is not one-sided if Wisdom’s expression of mirth is to be believed. "Ha-ha, I see...Is this true?” Wisdom asked John. 

John began nervously fiddling with his hands. “Well... yes, I have no recollection of arriving at the Fade but I know I don’t belong here. I must go home and confirm... something...” 

*sigh* 'It’s probably best, to be honest for this talk to go anywhere’ “Actually, I need to confirm if I... died...” 

“Somehow, I don’t think leaving the Fade will suffice to send you home. Am I right John?” 

Unlike Curiosity, who assumed that when John mentioned another world he was referring to the one across the Veil, Wisdom saw thought the scientist and could feel that the true nature of John’s origins was far more complicated. 

The grey spirit turned her affectionate eyes to John. “But I’m glad Curiosity has brought you to my den, you show signs of wisdom. Showing vulnerability need not be a weakness. In fact, it may very well be a sign of strength. Curiosity, I know you want to be involved, but it might be best if I talk to your friend alone first, ok? I’m sure he can share his findings with you later. Meanwhile, since you’ve last visited, I've guided the dreams of a researcher from the University of Val Royeaux, he wanted to hunt down a rare sub-species of nug called the leopard-nug but I convinced him instead that observing the animal in its habitat would yield more fruitful results. His memories of these nugs have been perusing my woods since then. Why don’t you try and find some?” 

Curiosity was not too keen on being pushed aside, but understood that Wisdom had its best interests at mind and that John would probably appreciate some privacy. Also, the idea of running around trying to catch some spotted nugs he had never seen before seemed like fun. So, Curiosity turned around and delved deeper into the forest in search of some furless mammals. 

With the yellow spirit gone, the conversation ensued. “So, child, how may I help you?” 

“I think you noticed, but when Curiosity said I'm from another world he doesn’t realize to what extent. I’m from a planet called Earth. I woke up in the Fade about eight hours ago, on a beach belonging to the domain of a Sloth demon. Prior to that I remember a car crash, I believe this is how I... died...” Nausea, a quickening of the oxygen intake, shaking of the hands followed by dilation of the pupils. John was unwell and beginning to panic. “It was awful! I still have ghost sensations of it. How am I standing here? How am I standing at all?!” 

A pair of slim but comforting grey arms wrapped around him. “Shh child. It will be all right. Just breath. You are safe here.” 

John held on to the comfort provided, the only thing keeping him tethered to his sanity and from toppling into a panic attack. From an analytical point of view, he understood what was happening, but even so it took a while until reaching a stable state of mind. With a meek voice, John shared his gratitude to wisdom and they separated, now that he was calmer. 

Wisdom sat back down, folding her legs beneath her. “It is not surprising that speaking of your own death would drive you into such a state, this is why I wanted Curiosity to be away while we talked.” 

“You knew I died?” 

She nodded in confirmation. “A blood magic ritual of large enough size required for one to cross physically into the Fade would have been felt by all its denizens. But when one perishes, their spirit ascends into the Fade. Since I’ve sensed no powerful blood magic, this was my first logical guess. What surprised me, however, was your thoughts and how they are.” 

“Curiosity kept saying my thoughts are loud and it can clearly listen to them. I was wondering if this was one of its attributes or if it applied to all spirits. Seems like I won’t be hiding much from anyone here...” 

“Worry not, child, such things can be trained and I would be glad to be of assistance. However, what I meant about your thoughts went beyond their loudness. When I hear your thoughts, I can listen to more than words. There is a song there, with harmonies and patterns I have never heard on a human before. So colorful yet rigid and so different from what I'm used to. This is why I assumed you must be from a distinctly different place than other humans, your song and mind have been molded by an environment unlike any in this world.” 

*sigh* “There is more, though. Despite, or perhaps because of, my world being devoid of magic, my people are far more technologically advanced. One of the many inventions use in our daily life is the computer and it is a machine capable of performing logical operations and store information. This machine is a powerful tool of many uses, one of which in entertainment under the form of games where storytelling if often done. It also happens that one series of said games is called, Dragon Age, and it portrays this world.” ‘Moment of truth, please don’t kill me...’ “And one character in these games is Solas, or Fen’ Harel as you know him...” 

Wisdom sat in silence for a shot yet an endless moment, reflecting about the grand revelations. “This is...fascinating! The hesitation with which you approached me also make much more sense now. At first, I thought it was just nervousness from contacting with spirits, as seen in other humans, but it felt like more. Fear not, Solas is a dear friend from a long time ago, but that does not mean I do his bidding. Should you want me to keep you secret, I can abide by such a request. Furthermore, you needn't worry about Solas for he is currently...indisposed.” 

“I believe he is in Uthenera, to recover from the creation of the veil, right?” 

“My, you do know quite a bit about our world. You should be careful, many people, spirit or otherwise, would like to discover such knowledge at any cost. This makes your inability to conceal your thoughts an even bigger problem than before.” She stood, turned pensive and stared deeply into John’s eyes. “Before I commit to teaching you, what do you intend to do with your knowledge? What role do you see yourself playing in shaping the future of this world?” 

This gave John pause; it was the first time he had to consider his role in this world which should not exist, the first time he had to ponder the consequences of his presence here in the lives of others. “I... don’t know. I want to get home, but recognize that it would be selfish of me to jeopardize the wellbeing of this world’s innocent bystanders to do so.” 

The response had a relaxing effect on Wisdom. “I eases me to know you will not be reckless or cruel with your gift, or should I call it a curse?” She said with mirth. “I don’t fault you for not knowing how to proceed, after all, you are in an unprecedented and difficult situation. I would recommend, however, that you make allies. You will need resources and help to face the journey back to your home, wherever it may be. I only ask that in doing so you can maintain order in the world, and protect the innocent.” 

Sensing a plan beginning to form, the outworlder steeled his resolve. “I promise that in my quest to return to Earth I will preserve Thedas and will always seek to lessen the suffering of its people! Please, Wisdom, guide me.” 

“Very well, there is one more thing we should discuss first. Your presence in the Fade provides a stream of thoughts, emotions and memories that may affect spirits in various ways. I am accustomed to contact with non-spirits and I am secure in my current purpose, but other younger spirits such as Curiosity may mutate. I can already feel a change in Curiosity’s song, it is far more compassionate than before. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. My friend Solas believes that a spirit shouldn’t be twisted of its purpose, but I attribute that to his pride. I wasn’t always a spirit of Wisdom, but I’ve welcomed change and thrived with it. Still, not all will welcome change, so this is something to have in mind that makes having you master your influence over your thoughts and the Fade an even bigger priority.” 

John was aware of this possibility, he had not expected, however, that his new friend would be impacted by his presence so soon. Despite only knowing Curiosity for a short amount of time, the spirit was endearing, and John was rapidly growing affectionate for it. The notion of twisting the yellow spirit from its purpose did not sit well with him. It was at this instance in time that he made a vow to master his influence over spirits and the Fade, for it was the right thing to do and it gave him a purpose and a goal to cling to in this trying chapter of his life. 

The grey spirit took his hands and smiled. “All will be well. Let us commence your training.” 

* * *

The following months were a gruelling combination of meditation, lectures and fade exploration to teach John how to live like a Fade dweller and take control of his thoughts. At the beginning of his studies, the foreign nature of the Fade proved a great obstacle, but with acclimation to his new environment and the help of both spirits, John grew by leaps and bounds. 

An unforeseen development was the manifestation of magical power. Whatever brought him to the Fade had changed John, made him attuned to the Fade such that he was capable of shaping and wielding its energies. The scientist in John was flabbergasted and amazed. Never had he dreamt of such control over energy, such dominion over reality, with a convenience that made him almost a little power drunk. And so, John’s studies evolved from learning Fade self-defense to becoming a full-fledged mage. 

Trusting Wisdom, John revealed some story details to her and in turn she hypothesized that, to return home, John would require powerful magic as the likes of the Inquisitor’s mark. So, they organized a plan. The ousted scientist would need to travel both the Fade and Thedas to research several magical phenomena so that he may produce a means of escape back to his planet of origin. The explosion at the Conclave would provide a way through the Veil into Thedas and becoming an agent for the Inquisition would supply John with resources and connections which would make the gathering of magical artifacts more easily done. It all came down to a gamble. Would Liliana and Cassandra keep him alive, or would he be branded a demon and put to death? He would have to take that chance. 

It was also of critical importance to preserve John’s memories of the future, so their strategy could be as effective as possible. This motivated them to exercise John’s recollection skills as a way of pseudo-engraving the Dragon Age plot’s most important story beats into his mind. With a little bit of Fade magic, of course. 

Despite the difficulties that awaited him, both John and Wisdom felt excited for the challenges ahead. As such, with a grin on his face and a shine in his eye, John announced: “Let’s call it: Operation Reborn in the Fade”. 

* * *

(Roughly 2 years after, 2 years until the Kirkwall rebellion and 6 years until the Conclave and beginning of Operation Reborn in the Fade.) 

The forest remained much of the same, with the emergence of some new exotic creatures added to it. The clearing by the waterfall, however, now featured a modern house with a brick front wall, white paint details and broad glass panes for windows. This house had become their headquarters and John’s haven for when he isn’t traveling the Fade. 

By the water sat Curiosity, Wisdom and John in a half-moon, as they concluded yet another lecture. 

“Good job. I can safely say that your control is now good enough for your thoughts to be audible only when in a state of great turmoil. This doesn't mean that the Fade will stop reflecting your memories, but your privacy should be safe. Congratulations John.” 

John smiled. “Thank you, I am happy with my progress. I feel much safer now than when I started.” 

“Now that spirits can no longer track you, it is time for you to be bolder in your explorations. I want to you to hone your barriers. There has been a malicious presence making waves in the deeper Fade, perhaps this could be a good test of your abilities. Would you be interested in taking a look alongside Curiosity?” 

Curiosity eagerly took John’s hand and jumped up and down. “It has been so long since w our last adventure, come one John, let’s take a trip.” 

The yellow spirit’s energy was infectious, the scientist turned mage couldn’t help but get excited. “It seems about time, doesn’t it? Let’s do it! Wisdom, if we’re not back within a Fade cycle, it means you have to save our asses...again.” 

Something John came quickly to realize is that the flow of time in the Fade doesn't operate on a linear scale as he was used to. It took a combination of mathematical methods from his previous life, Wisdom’s expertise and Curiosity’s knack for exploring the Fade for them to map formulas and patterns that could describe the time evolution of the Fade. Although the patterns varied in function of the location in the Fade, in a given region the passage of time followed a respective periodical pattern. By matching the time length of these patterns to Thedas’ day-night cycle, they realized that the duration of a Fade cycle was equal to a Thedosian day. The conclusion of the study was that time in the Fade can pass faster or slower than its counterpart, meaning that the same event of fixed duration in Thedas can take a different time duration in the Fade, but the Fade compensated the retardation or acceleration, such that despite the differences in time evolution the number of times an event can happen in the Fade in the timespan of a Thedosian day is the same as the number of times that event can happen in Thedas. Long story short, now they use the Fade cycle as a time unit, the day equivalent of the spirit world. 

Curiosity and John took their leave, jumping through one of the green vortexes and entering the space that connects the rest of the Fade together, which they aptly named Interstitial Fade. It was no man’s land, or rather no spirit’s land, a place that belonged to no one but was traveled by all. And that means demons. 

Back were the floating pillars of stone, upside-down waterfalls and dreary green skies. Employing once more the long-range hoping technique from when they entered Maxwell’s dream, this time paired with the occasional magic propulsion for stabilization, the pair of adventurers raced their way to the Deep Fade, the proverbial bad neighborhood of the fade. As they got closer, they kept running into freakishly aggressive giant bees, wasps and even floating jellyfish, all of which made for good target practice. Bolt by bolt, fireball by fireball they torched every single one of the ugly critters. 

The yellow spirit wasn’t too enthused with the foul gelatinous demons. "That was one nasty jellyfish, John.” 

If John’s wrinkled nose and mild face of disgust were any indicator, it seemed the human was equality bothered, if not more. “Yeah, and now it’s a nasty fried jellyfish. Good riddance, all these buggers give me the creeps, they always have.” 

Curiosity went silent for a while, pondering on something, until reaching a conclusion. “Ah! I see. I take it these are creatures you fear?” 

“Hmm? I suppose so, yeah. I was never a fan of bugs, poisonous ones in particular, and when I was a kid, I was afraid of going in the water at the beach because of the jellyfish.” 

“These are probably parasitic fear demons, feeding off your pettier fears. This could be a sign that a stronger Fear demon has nested nearby.” 

They carried on further into the bowels of the Fade, whilst cleaning up the pests that crossed their way. Eventually, the scientist mage, and the spirit child found what they were seeking. The vortex into the demon’s nest was before them. Like always, they clutched each other's hands and leaped into the space distortion. 

On the other side was a beaten dirt path that led to a large silver gate, which opened into the gardens of a mansion. It was night and the wind carried the howls of wolfs from the forest opposing the Chateau's walls. The pair of adventurers couldn’t help but feel sinister undertones emanating from the lights leaving the house through its many windows. For what was looked like an inhabited building, things were oddly silent. 

They took the walk through the gardens expecting something to jump at them from either the multiple topiary bushes that decorated the area or the shadowy corners by the walls. Fortunately, the outside of the property was deserted and both of them reached the Chateau’s large wooden doors safely. 

Stepping in, the first thing to be noticed was the large twin staircase carpeted in red velvet. The huge room was radiantly illuminated by a massive crystal chandelier that hung from the ceiling and a canopy of torches along the walls. Luscious patterned marble tiles lined the floor, paintings adorned the walls, an air of opulence dominated the atmosphere. There was, however, no soul in sight. 

“Hmm. Ok, then. What now, trailblazer?” John asked Curiosity, the small group’s designated scout. 

Curiosity shut its eyes and focused. “I sense a presence from deeper within. A basement, perhaps? The Demon must have been expecting the company and prepared some fortifications. I don’t know much about castles. What should we do, John?” 

Recollections of his previous life started popping into John’s mind. “Well... I remember castles from my world having dungeons. It’s one of the few underground areas a castle can have and, if I was a Fear Demon, that would probably be my kind of place to hang around. The Chateau's largest chimney was connected to the east wing, that is probably where the kitchen is. Assuming that’s near the servant’s quarters and that the prisoners and servants were kept as far away from the house’s Lord and his family, the areas surrounding the kitchen area may provide a good starting point for our search.” 

Having reached a decision, they made way to the east wing and began crossing the lush entry hall.” 

_BANG!_ As they passed the halfway point of the entrance hall, they heard the front door slam. Rapidly, the lights snuffed out, casting them in darkness. A sound of metals scraping together was whispered in the outworlder’s hears. Understanding flooded John’s senses, making him dash and tackle a suddenly shocked Curiosity. “Get down!” 

A thunderous cacophony of glass shattering, metal snaping and the ground shaking blasted their eardrums. The chandelier had fallen, almost crushing them. 

The yellow spirit was shaken. “Oh boy... That was a close one, John. Thanks.” 

“Ye...Yeah. I have a feeling we’ll have to worry about more than the demon, bud... Remember when we talked about movies?” 

“Yes. They are the fake memories your people put into moving drawings. Why bring it up now, though?” 

A shiver went down John’s spine. “Well... Some of these movies were of the horror variety. They were scary movies, usually featuring paranormal phenomena. Many of these films were about haunted houses.” 

They paused for a moment, just staring at each other. “So... The house is trying to kill us?” 

“The house is trying to kill us.” John passed confirmation with a shaky nod. 

Resuming their search, but with a much higher degree of caution, revealed the mansion’s kitchen. It was neatly organized, with pots and pans stored in a very orderly way by the truck-sized oven built into the wall, which connected to the large chimney. It was a short-lived stay though, as a salvo of flying knives forced them to jump out of a window and make a break for the servants' quarters through the outside. 

Once safe again, they were presented with two options. Contour the outside of the building in search of some kind of annex that leads into the dungeons, or passes through the building and explore the back part of the castle. To cover both angles in a fast-enough timeframe, they decided to split up and, once one of them locates the dungeon's entrance, they would regroup. 

Curiosity took the outside route, whereas John walked through the servant’s quarters' main hallway into the north wing. 

(John POV) 

Coursing through the servant's quarters yielded no surprises, which helped John calm down from the knife poltergeist assault. “Maybe the worst has passed.” 

As John passed the entryway which connected the quarters to the north wing, he was greeted by an aggressive armored combatant wielding a halberd. ‘...Well then...’ 

An accurately placed ice glyph sufficed at immobilizing the enemy by encapsulating its legs in a solid ice block. The thing was still capable of hurling the halberd like a spear, forcing John to duck and avoid having his skull pierced. He ran up to the creature and jump kicked the helmet right off, revealing...nothing. The scientist stood there for a moment just watching the suit of armor flail its arms about, amazed by how impossible it should be. 

‘Best to get a move on.’ The outworlder began climbing the nearby stairs. On the upper floor, he took a left, which led him to a library filled with loaded bookcases, a desk covered with papers, and a comfy plush armchair. The sight of all those books aroused the scientist’s interest, so he took a few moments to peruse the contents on the desk. The books and documents varied largely in content, from kids' stories to thesis in psychology and ‘natural philosophy’, including a disturbingly detailed and borderline sadistic description of a lobotomy procedure. 

He was startled out of reading when a book hit the back of his head. Almost as if a start signal, books began flying off the shelves, flapping their pages like a butterfly’s wings, and began assaulting John in earnest. It was going to be death by one thousand paper cuts. In response, the scientist turned mage gathered his focus and cast a barrier over himself, shielding him from the wrath of living literature. From this point, he saw only one way out. 

‘This is going to be so sad.’ With heavy remorse in his heart, John projected a fireball against the swirling mass of paper. The conflagration consumed the living books until only ash and cinder remained. He turned around and did a quick check to the rest of the building, concluded that the dungeons were nowhere near it and that the north wing was mainly designed for storage, a reading area, and a safe box area for valuables. ‘I guess it's time to head back’. 

(Curiosity POV) 

The yellow spirit’s stroll alongside the vine-covered outer walls quickly turned into a run for dear life when a pack of wild dogs showed up. The rabid beasts were coated in a heavy dirty fur and glared with bloodshot eyes at their prey, foaming at the mouth. As a pack, the dogs chased Curiosity until it managed to finagle between the metal bars of a fence. Unfortunately, the metal fence served the purpose of surrounding the Chateau’s cemetery. 

The dead began to rise, aroused from the intrusion upon their land, and yet again Curiosity was rushing, this time up a tree. The dead, despite their human appearance, lacked both the motor skills and the mental capabilities to climb the mighty oak. 

Doing its best impression of a monkey, the spirit waddled along a sturdy branch as the undead attempted to claw at its feet, growling and clacking their rotten teeth. 

Eventually, Curiosity passed the boundaries of the graveyard and jumped back into safety, thankful that the zombies had scared the dogs away. Tired and terrified, the spirit carried on until finding a small building with a heavy metal door. Engraved on the door it could be read: _Prisoners Quarters_. Finally, some progress! something to feel good about! And then Curiosity remembered: 

‘I have to do that whole walk back for John...’ 

(Regroup) 

They rendezvoused at the entrance of the servant’s quarters. John’s return was uneventful, Curiosity’s, however, was the exact opposite. If looks could kill, the scientist would have been fulminated by Curiosity’s glare. “We are never separating on a mission ever again. Ever!” 

John raise his hands and faced his palms towards the angered spirit in a quelling manner. “Ok, bud. I agree. That was reckless.” 

*sigh* “Yes. It was. But at least I found the dungeon entrance.” 

With the end goal in sight, they motivated each other to carry on and face the perilous trackback to the dungeon’s doors. The door was made of eight-centimeter-thick reinforced steel with a complex lock contraption. Both of the explorers were not too keen on procuring a key throughout the castle, given recent events, so, with a combination of ice magic to cool down the lock’s temperature followed by a quick burst of heat, the scientist managed to shatter the door’s locking mechanism, granting them passage into the dark dank depths of the Chateau’s prison. 

Each footstep resonated along the narrow stone stairway, the air was musty and the environment was claustrophobic. Downstairs led to a long hallway whose walls were littered with metal doors, much like the one above. Following along the underground passage, John eventually stopped by one of the doors. 

“Hey, bud, can you hear dripping?” Curiosity closed its eyes and tried to hone in on the sound. 

“Yes. It's fairly muted but it's definitely coming from in there.” 

Hesitantly, the outworlder placed his hand on the door handle. First, he waited for a beat and then rapidly pulled down on the handle and pushed the door open. The sound of falling water was largely replaced by a shrill screaming that was formerly not there. 

In the center of the room was a man, or rather the memory of one, violently thrashing against the bindings that were strapping his arms and legs to a table. Above the man’s head was a funnel-shaped metal contraption which, almost lazily, dripped fat water drops onto the man’s forehead. On said forehead a clear red welt was forming, an indication the man must’ve been here for hours, if not over a day. The repetitiveness of the falling water had driven him mad. Horrified, John grabbed the door handle and slammed the room shut, sending a thunderous bang throughout the hallway. Both of them were a little sick. They decided to not open any more doors. 

“John? I just want to get out of here, now.” 

“Me too, bud. Me too.” 

And so, they marched to the end of the hallway. There, they found a large open room filled with all sorts of torture apparatus. At the very center of it, laid the beast. The thing was hideous. John recognized it as a Terror demon by its fleshy spindly limbs and fingers, puke green hue, its excessive assortment of eyes and, of course, the stretched-out mouth in a caricature of an endless scream. 

The demon turned to them and spoke in a guttural and unnaturally deep voice that made their skin crawl. “You have come. I knew you would, Curiosity. The unknown, no matter how terrifying, always draw in the curious. Like a moth to a flame.” 

Having spoken its piece, the demon shouted a blood-curdling bellow and rushed the Chateau’s intruders. It leaned forwards quite heavily, using its long tail as a counter-balance. With its ugly mug and spaced out arms wielding talons at the end, the demon looked almost like a carnivorous dinosaur from the Mesozoic era. There was no time to dodge, but the scientist mage was quick enough to pull up a barrier over Curiosity and himself. 

With a great sweep of its claws, the Terror demon flung both of its unwanted guests further into the room. They both crashed against the torture equipment, splintering it, but remained unharmed due to John’s quick reflex. “Curiosity! Diversion maneuver!” They split, each running in the opposite direction. 

Being forced to pick its prey, the demon launched itself in the direction of the much juicer human. Noticing the beast quickly gaining ground on him, John began flinging every spell he had plus the kitchen sink, in the hope of slowing it down. Ironically, the thing was fearless, recklessly absorbing the damage with its arms and torso, but never slowing down. Eventually, it managed to tackle the outworlder for a good six meters. 

John pushed off the ground and tried to get up, but the monster wrapped its tail around his ankle and hoisted him into the air. The demon’s arms limped uselessly on its sides and burns littered its chest. The thing was livid. 

Lifting the human above its head, the terror demon began distending its jaw like a snake. From John’s perspective, he could see countless rows of tiny teeth that coated the monster’s mouth and throat. He tried squirming himself loose, but it was no use as the monster lowered him into its mouth. 

Suddenly, though, the monster dropped him. It was now squealing and flouncing on the ground in pain. There was a large metal protrusion that had to pierce the demon’s chest right through. And behind the monster was Curiosity, frozen and with a blank face. The yellow spirit had used one of the torture machine's fragments to impale the demon. 

The wound was too severe. It only took about three minutes until the Terror demon laid immobile and began vanishing into nothingness. Only an odd tar-like residue remained. 

Curiosity started flickering in different colors. Its shape began contorting. Realizing what was happening, John rushed over and hugged his friend tightly to his chest. “Hey, buddy, it's John. We’re ok, you saved us, bud!” The spirit was not responding, its formed continued mutating. 

“Hey! Do you remember movies!? I have so many stories to tell you yet. And dinosaurs, and why light is both a particle and a wave, and ice-cream, and skyscrapers, and the Internet! There is so much stuff to be curious about! Please, don’t let this moment twist you!” Whatever transformation Curiosity was undergoing halted. The human kept holding onto the spirit, whispering comfort and promises of wonderous tales in its ear. 

Slowly, Curiosity regained its yellow hue and gently hugged John back. “Thank you, John.” The human carefully pulled back with a relieved smile. “Thank god you’re ok, bud.” 

The heartfelt moment was interrupted by an earthquake. John spread out his arms, faced the roof, and sent an outraged shout “Could you stop trying to kill us for, like, five minutes!?” 

The pair got up and rushed to the chateau's exit. They nearly died twice. First, when the dungeon almost collapsed on them and second when the whole building almost collapsed on them. After a few close calls, they managed to exit the mansion, jumping back into the Interstitial Fade. 

They made their way back absolutely exhausted, John from the physical and psychological exertion and Curiosity from almost twisting from its purpose. Both of them needed time to recover. Once back at Wisdom’s den, they greeted the grey spirit and went to rest. 

As he fell asleep, the human reflected on the past two years, on the fragility of spirits who can turn like Curiosity almost did, and how much he grew as a mage. The times ahead were going to be tough, but he made a vow that he would protect his new friends and he would sooner die than break that promise. 

‘Perhaps more direct preparations for the future are in order...’ 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, 
> 
> This was my longest chapter yet, totaling 5.6k words, and it took a bit longer to get out because of it. 
> 
> I also played a bit with the writing style. I feel like text is flowing more naturally for me when I am writing now, then when I first started. Despite this, I feel like the transition from talking to Wisdom to exploring the haunted house was a bit out of nowhere, but the purpose was to showcase John's talents and abilities as a mage, as well as develop his relationship with Curiosity more. 
> 
> The next chapter will feature some "in dreams" interaction with relevant characters leading up to the Conclave, as well as the beginning of the actual game. I believe it's about time. :P 
> 
> I've been thinking on what I'm going to do about relationships in the fic. I know a lot of people value those tags so i wanted to add them. I've been thinking of only having one romantic relationship between Cassandra and Trevelyan. I believe that this would create an interesting dynamic with one being a mage and the other a seeker. Also, Cassandra is one of my absolute favorite characters from the Dragon Age series. 
> 
> What do you guys think? 
> 
> Meanwhile, I hope you enjoyed the chapter and stay safe. 
> 
> Best Regards, 
> 
> The_Giraffe


	5. The birth of Guidance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this new addition of Reborn in the Fade we have a series of mini-chapters revealing the consolidation of John's plans. 
> 
> We'll engage with new characters in preparation for the Inquisition events.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter marks the beginning of the actual in game events! I didn't expect for my introductory segment, where I explored the possibilities of being physically in the Fade, to drag on for so long, but I am satisfied with the outcome. 
> 
> This fic will probably be a bit swifter and streamlined to write, now that I have a certain story structure to follow.

(The horrific day of the Kirkwall rebellion. Four years until the Conclave and beginning of Operation Reborn in the Fade.) 

John and Curiosity were hunting down ancient elven memories from the age of Arlathan through the interstitial Fade, in search of a way to expand the outworlder’s knowledge of this world’s past as well as gauge a means to transport him back to his home, when all hell broke loose. An intense momentary brightness showered the Fade in light, casting away the dreary verdant glow for an ominous red flare. 

Time seemed to stop for a few heartbeats. 

Shortly after the luminosity abated, they got to witness one of the most beautiful and impressive light shows John had ever seen. Like balloons, white glowing spirits rose from the depths of the Fade by the hundreds, tracing all manner of patterns in their ever-upwards ascension. Some followed wavy movements, other performed spirals, some zig-zags, but all ended their trajectories on a bright burst of color resulting in a spectacle that could put any fireworks show to shame. 

It was nearly enough to bring John to tears, who could simply not look away. He turned to his companion and, with wonder in his eyes and voice, asked: “Where did all these spirits come from?” 

Surprisingly, Curiosity’s expression was not one of wonder but of sadness and horror. “John... Those are people. They just died and crossed the Veil... When they cross and are ready to truly depart, they dissolve into the Fade.” 

John froze. The terrible realization and meaning of his spirit friend’s words seeping into his being like a bucket of iced water poured over his head. It didn’t take long, however, for the shock to turn to panic. 

‘Something terrible happened! What did I forget? Where did I go wrong!?’ 

On some rocky plains of the Fade bellow both of the explorers, the gathering of an assortment of demons began to take place. The mass of monsters kept delving deeper into the Fade until they trespassed the Veil as they were called by some mage on the other side with the aid of blood magic, no doubt. 

“John! Grab a spirit and maybe we can check their memories!” 

The man lunged and grasped the brightest of the milky white apparitions by the ankle. It burst into a luminous yellow portal that vacuumed both of the adventurers into the late person’s memory. 

Suddenly, they found themselves before an altar in a colossal cathedral’s main chamber. In the middle of the main chamber, by the walls, were two large brass statues of the same bearded man facing one another. A pole with incense burners at the end was held by each of the figures. On the altar stood the statue of a woman with a closed right fist and a sword with its tip planted on the ground grasped on the left one. She looked heavily armored and had a radiant aura around her head. Beneath her feet hanged a banner with a representation of a sun. 

“That Lady, John, that’s how humans see Andraste.” 

One of the templars nearby approached the woman whose spirit John had reached out to. 

“Your grace, Knight-Commander Meredith and First Enchanter Orsino are at each other’s throats again! I fear that without your interference this will come to great violence for the people of Kirkwall. The champion, Hawke, appears to be trying to mediate the conflict.” 

Before the priestess could even respond, a pillar of furious red light sprouted from the ground. It pulsed angrily as it steadily grew in intensity. The rocks which composed the building started to tear and breakdown. In a few scant seconds, they were gone having witnessed the death of Grand Cleric Elthina. 

Back in the Interstitial Fade, John was feeling ill. For the first time, he had to confront the difference from having foreknowledge and having the power to actually do something about it. Rationally he understood that, even if there was a way for him to have left the Fade earlier and try to intervene, the outcome of the mage-templar attrition in Kirkwall would still almost certainly result in a violent rebellion. And so, feeling despondent and useless, tormented by the fact that he knew the devastation of Kirkwall was largely unavoidable, they renewed their efforts and preparations for the battles they would actually get to pick. 

* * *

(Roughly one year after the explosion of Kirkwall’s Chantry. Three years until the Conclave and beginning of Operation Reborn in the Fade.) 

The atrocities committed at Kirkwall left scars on John’s ego. Even knowing he had no role to play in those events, the feeling of powerlessness lit a fire under John. It also served as a wakeup call, that every moment was precious and that if he wanted his endeavors on Thedas to succeed, then John couldn’t leave his fate to chance. It was time to stack the odds in his favor. 

It took six months of conjoined effort between the outworlder’s new family away from home and a Faith spirit that Wisdom was acquainted with to track down the Fade region where Divine Justinia the fifth, formerly known as Revered Mother Dorothea, dreamed. Another person would have been virtually impossible to track in this short amount of time. Only someone with so many pious followers would appear so frequently and fondly in the memories of the masses, and it was those memories that paved the way to this opportunity. 

If John was to survive the Conclave aftermath, he will need allies. And could there be a better ally than the Divine herself, Justinia the Fifth? 

Garnering the Divine’s support was surely no easy task, but with her lies the trust of Cassandra and Liliana. Given that, in three years, John will most likely be at the mercy of both the Left and Right hands of the Divine, it was imperative for John to at least impart a positive impression on his future capturers. 

As always, Curiosity accompanied its friend to the dream’s entrance but this time did not follow him in, as the outworlder deemed it wiser to introduce himself alone and, perhaps more importantly, as a human. The outworlder leaped into the mind of Justinia the Fifth. 

John landed expertly on the diamond-patterned tiles of a chantry's entry hall. He recognized the new environment from the game. It was the Valance Cloister where you would escort Liliana in the video game so that she may find closure and release from her work as the Divine’s left hand. A place which was both ostentatious and serene. Justinia the Fifth was a Chantry Mother to this place when she was still just Dorothea, Grand Game player extraordinaire. 

Deeper within the sanctuary sat the Divine in prayer, in the main hall where, in contrast to Kirkwall’s former Chantry, a much more peaceful looking statue of Andraste held vigil over her most devout follower. 

‘Here goes nothing.’ 

*cough* “I apologize for interrupting, your worship, but I require an audience. Even though it is such an unorthodox one, within the Fade.” 

Placidly, the supreme Chantry Mother rose her head and looked at her visitor in the eyes. Oddly, she showed no hint of fear or surprise in her wrinkly face. It was almost uncomfortable how calm she was, almost as if she was expecting him and the scientist had fallen into a trap. 

“Worry not child. I must confess, however, that you’ve caught me unaware. Never have I been visited in my dreams, that I remember at least.” 

‘Oh, she’s just that good a bluffing. I bet she plays a mean hand of poker.’ 

“I promise I mean no harm, your worship, this was simply my only means to discuss a very sensitive matter with you, Divine Justinia.” 

Her face remained inscrutable, but a familiar glint of curiosity now shone on the Divine’s eyes. 

“Very well. However, I must say, you have me at a disadvantage.” 

“I go by the name of John and all I can ask is that you allow me to speak my piece before casting judgment upon my words.” 

Thus, John started the telling of the tale of the Inquisitor explaining the perils he must face, the people he will meet, and the importance his actions will have upon the world. He let his feelings impassion the speech, speaking words that carried both the memories of playing the game in a past life and the weight they mean for the future. He commiserated with the Divine about the frustration from his inability to act towards stopping catastrophe from striking Kirkwall’s Chantry. Shared memories of characters he had grown fond of, regardless of never having met them in the flesh before, including, of course, the ones that brought him today before Justinia the Fifth. 

“Your worship, I understand how outlandish all my words seem, however, I swear I speak the truth. If I am to act in the protection of the people of Thedas, then I must join the ranks of the future Inquisition. The only way I see to realize this is by having your Left and Right hands, Liliana and Cassandra, accept me into it once I abandon the Fade for the physical world.” 

The priestess ruminated on the outworlder's words, trying to seek their truthfulness. “Can you provide evidence of your foreknowledge. You must excuse me if I find you lacking in believability.” 

John feared this outcome. Despite the sudden setback, with some quick thinking, he found a way to turn the current dream into an opportunity. 

“As a matter of fact, your worship, I do.” The scientist then proceeded to drag Justinia to each secret switch of the puzzle you had to solve on Liliana’s quest. First, the one below the painting of the white thorny rose. Second, the one below the painting of Andraste being murdered by her mortal husband, Maferath. Third and final, the one on the statue of Andraste by a brazier. Each of the switches was accompanied by a clue. When all the clues are put together, they compose a message: 

_Always remember that faith is sprung from a barren branch._

_Above all, that strength lives in an open heart._

_That light has no fear of darkness._

Solving the puzzle revealed the hidden room where the memento Justinia left for Liliana was stored. 

“In the game, the Inquisitor accompanied Liliana to this very cloister, to solve this exact puzzle. He influences whether the Nightingale kills a Sister Natalie or have her show mercy, determining if Leliana hardens her heart, becoming ruthless and lingering in the shadows, or embraces her soft side once more, stepping back into the light. The empty box represents you releasing Liliana from her burdens, because, deep down, you’re afraid you’ve been using Liliana just like Marjolaine did.” 

A solemn silence, fitting for the holy atmosphere of the sanctuary, passed between them. Throughout the silence, the Divine’s countenance remained unchanged, she was truly a master of The Game, yet, the dream surrounding them accused the turmoil she was going through. The lighting became dimmer and greyer. The formerly vibrant paintings, velvets, and banners turned dull. Thorny vines grew and climbed both the walls and the stone rendition of Andraste. 

Soon this dream would turn to a nightmare and John can’t afford to let Justinia leave without confirmation of her assistance. “With the help of the Inquisitor, Liliana regained her light, she remained steadfast to your cause but embraced mercy and accepted your passing.” 

The high priestess reached and grabbed onto the outworlder’s forearm. “I see I was wrong about you. Originally, I had you pegged for a mage trying to manipulate his way into power. It would not have been the first time. The detail and extent of your knowledge, however, cannot be ignored. The suffering caused by the coming events must be minimized at all costs! “ 

John’s full attention was now on the Chantry’s matriarch, simply enraptured by her charisma. “I will leave mention of you in the rite I’ll leave to Cassandra and Liliana. There is still, however, the matter of how you’ll present yourself to the world.” 

At first, the outworlder was confused, but thinking more carefully, the Divine’s concerns were quite valid. Effectively, John is an alien in this world. He is living proof that other worlds with equally intelligent life forms to Thedas’ creatures exist and that said life forms are capable of accessing (a.k.a. invade) Thedas. Furthermore, the notion that their reality is a mere game to these foreign people can be terrifying and existentially damning. 

Feeling inadequate for his oversight, John replied coyly. "I confess... I haven’t thought about that detail, your worship.” 

Fortunately, the Divine just rolled with the punches. Turns out you don’t survive this long playing the Grand Game without the ability to remain unflappable. “I do not fault you, child. This is a tremendously sensitive matter and you’ve taken to bear the weight of the world upon your shoulders. Still, I worry about how my people will deal with the implications that will follow your entry into their world.” 

As Justinia turned thoughtful, her dream’s landscape began shifting once more. Rays of light shone through the stained-glass windows, casting away the dreary atmosphere. More importantly, the thorns around the statue decayed, being quickly replaced by a glowing aura. Just staring at the statue imbued John with hope. “I have a suggestion for you that may prevent further chaos as well as provide you with an alibi for your foreknowledge. The people are not ready for the full revelation of your nature and your origins, but if you present yourself as a spirit, then we can make you be an emissary of the Maker, sent to guide us in our time of need.” 

The Divine’s religious fervor reminded John of Maxwell and made him just as uncomfortable. “You would lie about me being sent by your Maker?” 

For the first time, Justinia’s expression changed, a sly smile occupied her face. “Are you not sent by the Maker? How did you end up in this world of which you are privy to such detailed information?” 

There was no way to formulate a valid retort. “... Touché.” 

She grinned victoriously. “Then we have reached an understanding. You must ‘become’ a spirit, that has visited my dreams, which will guide the Inquisitor. In turn, I will make sure both my Right and Left hands will allow you to guide when the time comes.” Swiftly, her demeanor became somber. “Hard times are coming. The mage-templar conflict was inevitable, it was like a storm brewing until it was struck by a spark. That spark was the compounded tragedies that made up Kirkwall for the past years. I confess I feel guilty for not taking a more active role in preventing the rebellion of the circle of Magi system from being a violent one. Alas, my hands were tied and it seems I will pay the price.” 

‘She couldn’t possibly mean...’ 

“Your worship, do you still intend to perish at the Conclave!? Even knowing it will happen?” 

With grim determination, the priestess responded. “There is too much at stake. If the enemy is as threatening as you claim then we cannot risk altering the course of Fate. Promise me that my sacrifice will allow you to better fight chaos, to bring justice and order to Thedas.” 

With as equally grim expression, John poured all his conviction into his words. “I promise you I’ll do my best to keep the peace of Theros and to bring fairness to your people.” Like so, another promise fell upon John’s arms, another burden to carry. 

The Revered Mother grabbed John’s hands and gently squeezed. “Now go. May the Maker walk alongside you.” 

John departed. His body, heavy. His mind, worried. But his heart, certain. Walking out the Valence Cloister’s door back into the Fade, John headed straight for Curiosity. “Guess what?” 

“Welcome back John. What happened?” 

With a cocky grin John told it. “I’m a spirit now. Call me Guidance.” 

* * *

(One year until the Conclave) 

It took ages between their training and scouring the Fade for clues, but they succeeded in locating the dreams of King Alistair Theirin. 

On the day of the Battle of Ostagar, where the late king Cailan was felled by darkspawn, memories of the survivors were vividly re-enacted in the Fade. None, however, compared to the nightmares of former Grey Warden Alistair, who experienced in the flesh some of the worst the battle had to offer and lived to tell the tale. This is how they managed to distinguish his dreams from the myriad of pathways available. 

Both of our explorers landed smack dab on the ramparts overseeing the battle. The air was fetid with the scent of blood and burning flesh. Roars of war reached their ears, the percussive drumming of metal striking metal shook their bones. The creatures were horrid and deformed things that reeked of death. 

Remembering the start of the Dragon Age Origins game, John decreed they make way for the Tower where the Grey Wardens had to light up the beacon, signalling for reinforcements that would never come. 

Together, Curiosity and John worked like a well-oiled machine, destroying the fictitious enemies in their way. Long were the days where the scientist turned mage struggled to protect himself in the Fade. It was a long journey, but he was now a prolific wilder of the Fade’s energies. 

It was a slog to climb all the floors of the tower. The continuous interruptions in the form of attacks from the Darkspawn horde did not help one bit, either. What should have taken five minutes ended up taking the better part of an hour, but, finally, both of them managed to accomplish the journey to the top. There, they witnessed the source of Alistair’s nightmare. 

The warrior turned king was struggling against the grasp of a hideous three-meter-tall beast. The ogre was squeezing the life out of the blond fighter, careless of the wounds being inflicted upon it by the Hero of Ferelden, his Mabari and the soldier giving support. Pure hatred filled its eyes. 

John took a slow deep breath and focused. Time almost seemed to slow for him. He plotted a trajectory in his mind, built up a tremendous amount of electrostatic energy in his right hand, then pointed and released the accumulated power in a blinding lightning bolt that struck the ogre right on the left side of its face. The monster’s face was charred, now sporting an empty darkened eye socket, its flesh was melting exposing its teeth and jawbone through the cheek. 

Alistair fell to the ground, now free. The warrior quickly rose, grabbed his sword and stuck down the beast, plunging his heavy blade into its heart. Dark blood spurted out of the creature’s chest, which shrieked an abominable sound. Everyone present at the top of the tower held their breath as the darkspawn spasmed on the ground, until life slipped away from its now cooling corpse. 

“Good riddance. Ugly fucker, wasn’t it?” Asked the charming blond. 

‘Always the joker, aren’t you?’ 

“Indeed” Said John. “Made especially horrific due to the figments of your imagination that are feeding this nightmare.” 

The warrior kept a cheeky smile on his countenance but turned wearier. “Yes, quite. Such horrors are the stuff of nightmares.” 

The outworlder snorted. “No, your highness. You are dreaming, this is a literal nightmare. Perhaps this will make things clearer.” 

Channelling his power into his most recently acquired magical prowess, John began shaping the very dream around them, transporting them to Denerim’s market place, which is a spot both familiar to Alistair as well as capable of passing the illusion that he was not cornered or alone. At least this decision was enough to keep King Alistair, now dressed in far more regal apparel, from running them through with his sword, although he was definitely on guard now. “What is the meaning of this?!” 

“Greeting, your highness, my name is Guidance, but you can call me John, and this is Curiosity.” He pointed with his palm to his friend. 

“Howdy!” The yellow spirit cheerfully waved. 

The scientist proceeded. “I am afraid to be the bearer of bad news or, at least, to be the bringer of a dire warning.” John turned and presented a platter filled with a vast assortment of cheese. “Before I begin, would you like some cheese?” 

The king glared suspiciously at his dream’s intruders. Still, he languidly reached for a chunk of brie a slowly brought it to his mouth to gently nibble on. He spoke with his mouth full. “I'm listening.” 

With a serious demeanour, the outworlder turned all of his attention on Alistair. The handling of the Grey Wardens after the Inquisition took over was one of John’s main concerns due to it being fairly out of everyone’s control. On one side, the Wardens are a prestigious institution that has been integral to stopping the Blights, on the other side, they are an unregulated organization of warriors who, as time will tell, can be manipulated and weaponized for evil. Reforming the Grey Wardens, which have rigid traditions that have been followed for hundreds of years, seems like too big of a task to accomplish, so, the only solution the scientist managed to concoct was to form a new Grey Warden order, which would be governed and regulated by someone trustworthy. 

“Soon, every Grey Warden will begin to hear the calling.” 

King Alistair immediately tried to protest, but John interrupted him. “Please, let me finish. The cause of this collective calling lies in a powerful Nightmare demon. This demon serves an even greater monster who wishes to manipulate the Wardens into doing his bidding. I am here to urge you to prevent your shield-brothers from falling into the monster’s machinations or, should you fail, to save and protect the Grey Wardens who would heed to reason. In the eventuality of the Grey Wardens falling, by preserving at least a few of its former members we will be able to somewhat restore the order.” 

To John’s surprise, the blonde ruler actually took the time to reflect upon the mysterious stranger’s words, instead of rushing to the defence of the Warden’s good name. “How can I trust you? So far, I think you are either a swindler or touched in the head. The way you forcefully entered my dreams is also does you no favour.” 

‘I was expecting as much.’ 

“Regarding the intrusion upon your dreams, I am afraid this was the only way to approach you. As for proof of my warning, I cannot provide one which is irrefutable. The only thing I can say in my defence is that I possess knowledge that should be impossible for me to have. For example, I know that at the moment Ferelden has granted sanctuary to the mages. Their leader, Grand Enchanter Fiona, is your mother. Speak to her, and perhaps you can become convinced of my words. Regardless, I’ve passed on my warning. Please take care of the Wardens and yourself. The future may appear bleak and a lot of bullshit is going to happen, but we must hold strong. Goodbye, I promise we will meet again, hopefully as allies.” 

In his shock, Alistair failed to further interrogate the man that showed up out of nowhere bearing stunning revelations. The mage, with a gesture of his hands, ejected himself and his spirit companion from the dream, landing back in the Fade. 

Curiosity demurely turned to John. “I don’t think he was particularly convinced. Do you think we managed to help?” 

*sigh* “I don’t know, bud. Sometimes, the best you can do is try.” 

* * *

(1 day before the Conclave and start of operation Reborn in the Fade) 

Visually, there was no change to Wisdom’s den but a tension hung in the air, a mixture of excitement and apprehensiveness. The trio sat cross-legged by the pond, enjoying the crashing sound of the waterfall. The time to take action felt breaths away and John, now Guidance, did everything in his power to prepare for the occasion. It took eight years of practice as a mage, several existential crises and even attempting to play the Game, as the Orlesians call it, to position different political pieces to better cushion the fallout of tomorrows events. The scariest thing, however, is that he didn’t look a day older than when he arrived to this world. 

‘Sometimes I wonder if I am truly human or if was destined to be a spirit all along.’ 

Wisdom broke John out of his thoughts. “John, Guidance, I want you to know that whatever happens and wherever your journey leads you, I am proud of you and glad I had the opportunity to meet you. You will be tested time and time again, but I believe you will prevail. Should you falter, I want you to know we will always be here for you.” 

Curiosity walked up to John with a wobbling smile. It gave a big hug to its friend, who taught it so much, trying to impart the care and affection of the bond they forged since their random encounter on the beach at Sloth’s domain. “I’ll miss you John, even if we get to meet each other in dreams.” 

With a full heart, the outworlder retuned the hug with just as much affection. “I’ll miss you too, bud, you’re my best friend. I promise to seek you out in the Fade when I sleep.” 

Wisdom patted John’s arm and smiled. “Are you ready?” 

“Almost.” John said. “There is one more thing I have to see to before I go.” 

* * *

Maxwell’s dream was different from the last time John visited. Replacing the pleasant castle courtyard from the House of Trevelyan was a stern stone hallway, connecting two wooden doors at opposite ends of the passageway. In the middle of the hallway you could find a small mahogany table with a candle on top and a pair of chairs by a window. Sitting in one of said chairs was Maxwell Trevelyan himself. 

The man, and that’s what he was now, was starkly different from their last encounter. Long gone were the awkward limbs and shy demeanour. Now, he had broad sholders and the confidence to hold his head high. 

Currently, the young mage was distracted, staring out the window to glimpse the visage of the lake bellow. John silently walked over and took a seat on the opposing seat. 

“Hello Max.” 

The red-head startled. “It's you! I thought I made you up when I was younger! Why did you never visit?” 

With a mischievous smile the outworlder deflected. “I’ve been busy. What makes you think I’m real now?” 

“I can tell, now that I went through my Harrowing, telling apart what makes up my dream and what is foreign to it is much easier.” Maxwell answered. “At the time of our previous meeting, I was not experienced enough to be one hundred percent sure and the passage of time made me feel more and more that you were a figment of my imagination in a time I needed release from my worries. I see you have still not been able to depart to the afterlife.” 

Remembering their previous conversation, John confirmed Max’s comment. “Indeed, there is something I must do before I can move on. And what I have to do pertains to you, as well. In fact, I am here to ask you to trust me.” 

The foreboding tone sobered Maxwell right up. “What is it that you need of me, John?” 

“You are at the mage-templar Conclave, correct?” 

The red-head nodded. “Yes. How did you know? The Divine believes my influence as both a noble and a mage can help us reach a consensus between the Templar order and the Rebellion.” 

“Tomorow, a series of events will be set in motion and you will be in the centre of them. You will be forced onto a burden few could carry, but if someone must carry said burden I rather it be you, since I know you are one of the few who can prevail over the chaos that awaits us.” 

At this point the nobleman was getting scared. “What is happening tomorrow?! Are the mages in danger!?” 

“Don’t worry, Divine Justinia V is aware of what will happen tomorrow. I am on a self-imposed mission with her blessing. That is why I need you to trust me, because my mission is to guide and assist you, so that the burden you will carry can be the slightest bit lighter. From now on, call me Guidance and save my real name for when we are in private. So, Maxwell, will you trust me?” 

The Trevelyan mage was reticent. On one side, John, or Guidance rather, has proven to be a friend in the past, however he does not really know the other man. He gazed deep into the mysterious man’s eyes, trying to judge his character. Finding nothing lacking, he gives his acceptance. “I barely know you, Guidance, but you’ve seemed truthful to me. If the Divine approves your actions than so shall I.” 

John smiled. I was not critical for Maxwell to accept him so readily, trust between them was something they could have cultivated, but being on the same side right from the get go will definitely iron out some of the attritions and arguments that might pop up. They can’t really afford to be indecisive in their position, when indecisiveness can cost lives. “Thank you, Max. Do you still believe in the Maker?” 

The red-head nodded very seriously. “I do.” 

With a sly smirk, the pretend spirit said. “Good. You’re going to need that faith. See you tomorrow.” 

“Oh...Hum... Bye?” 

And so, John stood and marched up to the wooden door at the end of the hallway. He grabbed the knob and, before leaving the dream, looked back at Maxwell who was sporting a worried expression. 

‘We have a lot of work ahead of us. For both your good and mine, let’s hope your Maker is watching over us.’ 

* * *

(The moment of truth) 

The Fade was in a frenzy John had yet to experience. Spirits and demons alike were scuttering around, draw by the power of Solas’ _foci_ as Corypheus prepared to sacrifice Divine Justinia the Fifht. It took some manoeuvring to enter the Nightmare’s domain undetected, but he was now safely stashed away in a corner waiting for the show to start. 

Supposedly, the reason Corypheus picked Justinia for the sacrifice was so he could incite chaos and unrest in the masses, a twisted message about gods not existing and that only he could be considered divine. Any other blood magic sacrifice would have sufficed to unlock the orb, but the Darkspawn chose to use this moment to send a message and this decision costed him the key to the golden city. John took comfort in the hubris of his enemy, for arrogance is the poison which can kill even gods, as the history of this world has proven. 

The outworlder was momentarily blinded by the violent light that erupted at the centre of the area. From the blazing light show fell two figures: Maxwell and the Divine herself. Parasitic terror demons in the shape of spiders quickly began chasing the easy prey. Taking this as his que, John gave chase as well. 

Due to starting so far behind, the mage-scientist only managed to catch up when Justinia and Max were already climbing the wall to the exit, creepy spider demons on their heels. With careful application of magical fire jets, John managed to quickly propel himself up the wall, successfully reaching the top at the same time as Maxwell, who lagged behind the Divine. 

“Justinia!” 

“Guidance! You’re here!” 

Together they hoisted Maxwell up the platform. The red-head was overjoyed at the sight of a friendly face in the midst of the confusion. “Guidance! You made it, you bastard! You have so much explaining to do!” 

“Ha-ha! All in due time my friend. We must hurry.” 

They made haste towards the exit but it was too late. A swarm of the monsters was upon them, too quick to dodge. John attempted to blast them away, however, it was an exercise in futility with how numerous the enemies were. Max and him managed to fight their way to the exit, only to notice the Divine was being dragged back into the creatures’ hunting grounds. “Justinia! Hold on!” 

“No!” She screamed. “You must live! Hold your promise, honour it, and please, tell Cassandra and Liliana it is not their fault!” 

He could feel his heart break, but they had to carry on, for the good of the world. He turned around and forcefully pushed Maxwell through the Veil’s rift. 

Agony. John’s body, or the lack thereof, felt like molten lead being poured onto every surface and every crevice of his being. The scientist, in morbid fascination, could feel his bones popping into existence and slotting into their right position, muscle sinew stretched and weaved to form tissue which enveloped the bone, organs took shape like bubbles out of a fleshy goop. At last, he could feel a layer of skin crawl over himself, encapsulating the final product. Although all this process seemed really drawn-out, in actuality in occurred in a fraction of a second. Still, the shock of having a physical body once more as well as the painful process of birthing this new body out of thin air was enough to knock him out. 

* * *

When John came to, he was in a damp dungeon, shackled to the floor by some iron manacles. To his left sat Maxwell, which appeared dazed and confused. Occasionally the nobleman would clutch his palm when it spasmed with magical energy from the anchor. Four men with swords surrounded them. 

Suddenly, the resounding sound of a door slamming open interrupted John’s inspection. In came the Right hand of the now late Divine, Cassandra, and the Left hand, Liliana. The time had come. 

‘Very well. Game on.’ 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, 
> 
> It's The_Giraffe again, how've you been? 
> 
> I am finally embarking into the main plot of the story. Hurray! 
> 
> Regarding relationships, you have probably noticed I've updated the tags. I decided that Dorian would be an interesting fit for John, because he was practically ousted from Tevinter until the Corypheus drama is settled, so, in that way, I believe Dorian will be able to empathize with John's plight. 
> 
> I'm also just a sucker for Dorian. :P 
> 
> I send a hug to those who chose to follow the story all the way to this point, despite it featuring minimal story related content so far. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter. 
> 
> Stay safe, stay well, 
> 
> The_Giraffe.


	6. A new perspective

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter, we get to follow maxwell's POV and discover that the Inquisitor to be has a potty-mouth but, fortunately, knows how to contain it to his inner voice. 
> 
> John and Maxwell face interrogation and the perilous trip to the temple of Sacred Ashes, where Maxwell decides to put his life on the line to fix the chaos that is threatening to swallow all of Thedas.

(Maxwell Trevelyan's POV)

'What the fuck is going on ?!'

Confusion did not suffice to describe what the Trevelyan was feeling right now. He was shackled to the floor of a dungeon, with guards standing by menacingly. To his left sat his supposedly dead friend, now in the flesh, looking like the situation they were in was par for the course. Worse of all, his left hand had a mark that felt like it was on fucking fire! Occasionally flaring with a burst of pain and alarmingly foreign magic. He began fishing through his memories in search of how things and escalated to this point.

Maxwell had felt antsy all of yesterday ('Was it yesterday?') due to John's warning, and this restlessness drove him to repeatedly patrol the grounds of The Temple of Sacred Ashes. 

In his vigil, he remembered running into a Dalish bow-woman by the name of Ellana Levellan, who, despite the typical animosity the elves of the wilderness had towards humans, explained she was only there to report on the outcome of the Conclave to her clan, and as such, seemed to not pose a threat to the proceedings of the mage-Templar summit. He urged her to stay away, however, for other humans ('The Templars', his mind echoed) may not be so lenient with intruders. Sensing no deception in the neatly dressed shem mage and understanding the wisdom of his words, Ellana retreated. She could gather Intel on the result of the gathering at a later date.

Trevelyan had carried on with his surveillance with nervousness fueled by his paranoia, which was only exacerbated when he walked by the Right and Left hands of the Divine, both terrifying women in their own way, who were surely preparing to convoke the next meeting. 

Half-way through his rounds, the mage heard a woman screaming for help, he raced down the hall that leads deep into the quarters, noticing dead guards along the way. The lack of fighting sounds prior and the deep lacerations along their throats had suggested they had been caught by surprise. How someone had gotten the drop on them in a long narrow hallway, Trevelyan was not so sure.

Racing further down the cobble passage-way, Maxwell had succeeded in locating the room where the shouting was emanating from. He pushed open the door and... and... What? Like a dense blanket of fog over his eyes and cotton in his hear, recollecting what lied beyond that wooden door posed an unnatural struggle for the red-head.

'It happened just yesterday... why can't I remember?' He thought, weirded out by his predicament. After wrestling with his memories for a while longer, all he could remember was a woman, a man, and more running. Maybe being chased? But by what?

The clangorous sound of a metal door being slammed open drew him out of his reverie. Raising his head to inspect his visitors, Max went pale. Seeker Cassandra Pentaghast and the Nightingale had made an appearance. The Seeker in particular looked absolutely furious, as she took to walk around him in a circle. Sister Liliana stationed herself before Guidance and crossed her arms staring pointedly at his friend's eyes, who probably had a death wish as he maintained eye contact with her.

“Tell me why I shouldn't kill both of you now?” Cassandra asked near his ear, her tone carrying a mixed undertone of desperation and cold wrath, gelid and eager to strike him down. The intimidating super-Templar nearly made him pee his pants a little.

“The Conclave was destroyed, along with everyone still in the temple four days ago. Everyone, except the two of you.”

'Shit...' “You think we did this, don't you?”

“Yes, so far you are our only suspects. How do you explain this?” She said as the raised Maxwell's hand, who began to flare with a sting, by the wrist.

'Yeah, I guess that is pretty suspicious. I'm so fucked. Maker, mom, dad, sister, it was good while it lasted.' 

“I promise I have zero clues about how that got there!”

“You're lying!” She grabbed him by the cuff of his shirt and pulled him up, to be face to face with her. In any other situation, we would have blushed at the proximity, but now all he could do was shudder in fear.

“And then there is you.” Spoke Liliana for the first time since the start of the interrogation, and diverting the livid Seeker's attention to Guidance. “You hold your head quite high for someone who is about to lose it.” She said with a small sadistic smile and cold promises of suffering in her eye. “One hour before the explosion, Divine Justinia asked me and Cassandra to relocate all the visitors to the outside of the temple. She said something like, 'Uniting all the Maker's children under his light.'. Before carrying out her request, though, she handed me a letter and gave me instructions to open it no sooner than the day after. Do you know what I discovered that morning in her message? She knew the explosion was going to happen, that she was going to die. YOU knew she was going to die.”

'What the FUCK is going on?!' Though the perplexed mage.

In a lightning-fast motion, the Nightingale drew a dagger and positioned it's a tip just under Guidance's chin, forcing the ...man? ...spirit? ...to stretch his neck uncomfortably, lest he gets his windpipe slit open. Despite Guidance's countenance remaining unchanged, Max could tell he was beginning to sweat.

“Talk.” Liliana whispered with intimidating intent. “Who is responsible for the devastation at the Conclave? What is your involvement?”

“Neither I nor Trevelyan is accountable for blasting the Temple of Sacred Ashes.” Guidance answered, using his eyes to point at him. “Providing you with too much information too fast would only derail your future endeavors. I will tell you all I know, in due time. I promise I'm on your side.”

For the first time since the beginning of the questioning, John revealed a look of fragility. “I also wanted Dorothea to live, Sister Liliana, but with her death, she saw an opportunity for true change, albeit a radical one. Justinia also asked of me to tell you: This was not your fault.”

The brutal mistress nearly flinched at the words and took a silent moment to recompose herself. She withdrew the knife from its threatening position.“ When did you confide with the Most Holy?”

“One day, about thirteen months ago, I visited Justinia's dreams. There we discussed many things, which I promise I will reveal to you in time, and organized a plan that has now been set in motion.” The mysterious man truthfully answered.

“Do you think he is lying, Liliana?” Cassandra asked with no short measure of suspicion in her gaze.

“Had you asked me yesterday, I would have laughed at the very notion. However, in light of recent events, this rendezvous in the Divine's dreams do not seem so far-fetched. It would also explain her sudden change in behavior this year, the spontaneous frenzy her actions had carried these past few months.”

The Seeker of Truth was surprised. “What do you mean?! I noticed no such changes in Justinia!”

“It was small things, Cassandra.” Were the disarming words of the Nightingale. “Like how frequently she had been updating her will, the increasing number of missives sent all over Thedas, and how aggressively she began pushing for change. She knew she was going to die, so she tried to make the most out of her limited time. Now, only the most important question remains.” She redirected her attention fully to Guidance. “How could you possibly know that yesterday's events were going to unfold a year or more in advance?”

The puzzling man-spirit retorted with a question of his own. “Did Divine Justinia not mention my purpose in her letter?” 

Maxwell was tremendously curious as well but dared not speak out and ruin his proverbial 'fly on the wall' disposition, which so far had shielded him from the wrath of both terrifying women. He was trusting his friend to get them out of this mess. At least he seemed to know what he was doing.

“She vouched for your character, but said that the only way Cassandra and I would believe you would be by having you earn our trust.”

“That is... extremely like her...” 

“It is.” The spymaster said with a vicious smirk.

Without further delay, the former Fade denizen introduced himself. “I am Guidance, my purpose as a spirit is to help you navigate the trying times ahead. I approached the Divine to share my magical gift of prediction, such that I would be able to assist in alleviating the suffering the south of Thedas will have to endure in the coming years.”

The Left and Right hands of the Divine shared a silent conversation with their eyes, as they individually pondered the repercussions of the dubious and foreboding words of this supposed spirit. The way the Seeker's hand now clutched the hilt of her sword did not go unnoticed by both prisoners.

Meanwhile, certain indignation at the lies John was telling sprouted within the young noble. He knew that, although John had been trapped in the Fade, he was no spirit, the red-headed mage had even confirmed this in his dreams of two nights ago when Guidance last visited him. By the pleading look that his comrade in irons was now subtly throwing him, the man knew that Maxwell could easily give him away. The Trevelyan mage kept quiet, however, since he didn't know if whatever was now marked on his hand was enough to keep his captors from killing him, and, so far, Guidance seemed to be his most viable way of getting out of this cell. Nevertheless, when Maxwell managed to get a moment alone with guidance, they were going to have words about these falsehoods.

It seemed Liliana was done with her reflections. “Interesting. I believe I have enough information. For now...” She added, promising that their interrogation was still far from over. “I would love to carry on, but we are on a limited schedule. They're all yours, Cassandra.”

The Seeker gave a curt command. “Unshackle them.” One of the guards which had melded with the background came forth with a key and freed both the prisoners from their bindings.

Maxwell was relieved to have some blood flow return to his hands and legs. Still, it seemed that the Divine's Right hand wasn't going to give them much of a reprieve, as she entered some kind of drill sergeant mode. “Listen up! You!” She pointed to Maxwell. “Are only still alive because we might need the thing on your hand. And you!” She shifted the accusing appendage to point in Guidance's direction. “Are only still alive because of Divine Justinia's letter. In either of you steps out of line or against the people of Haven, I will gut you myself. Are we clear?”

John gave a stiff nod in confirmation, whereas Maxwell released a meek: “Crystal, Lady Pentaghast.” 

“Good” She seemed calmer due to her detainee's compliance. “Follow me. There is something I must show you.”

They obediently tailed the Seeker, not wanting to incur her anger again. Once outside, Maxwell stared in horror at the petrifying sight of a colossal green hole in the sky.

Cassandra began briefing them on the events“That is the breached. We believe that it was caused by whatever devastated the Conclave. Many of these rifts connecting our world to he fade have been detected, that one, however, is the largest.” 

His magical wound pulsed in time with a burst from the massive iridescent vortex, which spewed some kind of meteorites. The agony brought him to his knees.

“The mark is killing you and we must use it to seal the breach. Please, try to hold strong until then.” Requested Cassandra, who seemed to expect an answer. Next to the seeker, John nudged his head sideways in her direction, trying to silently communicate something to him like: 'Come on, give her an answer.'

Max squinted his eyes in irritation, trying to convey his feelings of: 'What the fuck do you want me to say?!' This only elicited the Seeker to raise an eyebrow in mild disgust at their blatant childish antics. 

Trevelyan acted like he always does in these situations, he talked from the heart. “If this thing will help put a stop to that, I'll help in any way I can.”

Judging by the look of approval on Cassandra and the double thumbs-up the Guidance was tossing his way, he said the right thing.

“Let's go.” She ordered, but just as they started to move she placed a hand on Guidance's shoulder. “Not you. Guards!” A pair of foot-soldiers heeded her call. “Take this man to Liliana and make sure to keep him under surveillance, he may have useful information for her.”

As soon and Guidance went to protest, Cassandra shut him down with a fierce glare. Maxwell felt uneasy at the loss of Guidance's supporting figure but knew he was in no position to complain right now. Realizing the same, the man-spirit complied and let himself be guided by the guards. Now alone with the Seeker, surrounded by angry villagers that were pricing him with judging leers, the young mage was feeling lost and tiny before the threat he was being made to face. 

She leads him up a hill so they could cross a bridge. As they were crossing, one of the projectiles spewed by the breach collided with the overpass, making it collapse and launching them onto the frozen lake's surface, below. To his horror, grey demons emerged and commenced attacking them with their vicious sharp talons. Arming himself with a mage staff from a nearby weapons stash, which had also fallen from the bridge, Maxwell began pelting the monsters with his magic. Once the fighting was done, Cassandra demanded that he drop his weapon, but acquiesced upon realizing that she would not be able to fully protect him and, thus, it would be necessary for the mage to have the means to defend himself.

They fought their way through the mountainside, tearing apart more of the shades along with wisps, a spectral floating type of demon that launched magic missiles as a means of offense. It did not take too long to group up with an elf mage and a dwarf with a fancy crossbow, who were staving off the ceaseless horde of demons emanating from, what Maxwell assumed was, one the rifts Cassandra had mentioned in passing. The bald mage grabbed his hand and wielded it as a staff, forcing a tether to take shape between the mark and the rift. He felt a painful tug on his hand which grew in intensity until the rift was sealed with a burst on magical energy. The baldy introduced himself as Solas and the dwarf as Varric. The first was hard to get a read on and carried himself with an air of importance, and the second Maxwell immediately took a liking to due to his cheerful nature. 

Now that they had assembled a group of four and proved that the mark can function as a closing mechanism for the rifts, the young mage felt invigorated and doubled his efforts in cutting down the demon menace. Perhaps he was a little too motivated, though.

'I could do this all day! Burn, fucker! Burn!' He thought with glee.

Cassandra had to snap him out of his battle frenzy before he got himself killed. Solas was slightly disappointed in Max's actions and even Varric looked a bit dispirited at the kid's actions.

“Jeez, Kid. I've seen Qunari berserk warriors with more restraint than you...”

Chastised, the redhead cooled down and sealed the rift blocking their passage. As a unit, the four of them marched up to Liliana, who had her arms crossed over her chest and appeared to be in a staring contest with Guidance.

“You.” She directed at Max. “We have been gathering the troops to assault to retake the temple, but Guidance suggests you take a more hidden route to see if any members of one of my scouting parties can be salvaged. This option would also save us time, but the fact that my men did not return indicates that it might be dangerous. How would you proceed?”

“Hum... I guess I'd take the faster option. Plus, don't you want to rescue your scouts?”

Cassandra protested. “We could be jeopardizing all of Thedas by taking that risk.”

“Still, we've been doing fine so far. I believe it's worth the risk.” Max riposted.

A cocky grin bloomed on John's countenance. “See, I told you so.”

Liliana sighed and the Seeker was halfway miffed. “Hurrg! Must you always act like children? Fine, since the burden of sealing the breach falls on you, we'll climb the mountain pass. Liliana, where is Grand Chancellor Roderick? I imagined he would be complaining to you by now.” 

The Nightingale coughed to hide her smirk. “Chancellor Asignon was here a while ago, but Guidance managed to... persuade him into seeking shelter.” 

Cassandra was pleasantly surprised, but Guidance quickly made sure she didn't get the wrong impression. “Don't be mistaken, the man was insufferable, a bureaucrat through and through. It just took a bit of 'going nowhere' talk to.”

Her mood became sourer. “Going nowhere talk?” 

“No, you.” the man-spirit illustrated with a grin.

“Hurrg. I'm done with you. Lets march.”

Maxwell's group went up the mountains through the old mining complex, whereas Guidance and Liliana followed the soldiers as they cleaved through the demon swarm.

The path had been treacherous, as predicted, but they succeed in sealing yet another rift and prevented the scouts' lives from going to waste, so the young noble was glad to stick by his decision. With the path ahead being clear, it took them a short time to reach the ruins of the Temple of Sacred Ashes. The combination of the now barren soil and the carbonized corpses made for a dreadful sight that made Max's heart heavy with grief.

Guidance and Liliana rendezvoused with them minutes later, after the foot-soldiers triumphantly carved a path through the horde of monsters. “You are here. Thank the maker!” Cassandra requested Liliana to distribute her men along the ramparts, and then Maxwell and his escorts started for the epicenter of the explosion. Menacing crystalline structures that glowed a bright red were scattered all over the ruin's walls, and, according to Varric, they are bad news. An ominous voice echoed around the area, which was soon followed by Divine Justinia's voice. As they approached the rift connected to the breach, the projection of a memory from the Fade erupted out of thin air, and it revealed what had happened to the Most Holy. The oddest part was how calm and composed the Divine had turned when Maxwell made an appearance.

“Ha! My child. I was expecting you, you who will succeed where I have failed. Catch!” She shouted, quickly punting a glowing stone orb out of some fogged up being's hand. The magical sphere rolled in his direction, and, wanting to comply with the Most Holy's wishes, he lunged for it. When his hand made contact with the artifact, past him gripped it and squirmed in pain. A bright green flare began to radiate from the orb until...Silence. 

Casandra had a dozen questions for the Trevelyan mage, but Guidance intervened before they could be asked. “Breach now, talk later. Ok?”

Begrudgingly accepting the current set of priorities, the Seeker acquiesced. The hobo elf took this as an opportunity to inform that sealing this rift would seal the breach, but to due so, they first must reopen it, like proverbially ripping a scab off a wound. Additionally, tearing open the rift would likely bring forth demons from the other side, which the redhead was getting kind of sick of. 

He felt Guidance, who now wielded a staff, elbow him lightly in the ribs to get his attention. “Relax, we've got your back. FYY, don't use lightning.”

“...FY what?”

Varric complained about Max taking too long. “ C'mon, kid. Just open the damn thing.”

So, he stretched out his arm and hooked its magic to the rift, embracing the continuous pulling sensation until the rift popped open. Despite expecting an attack, nothing could have prepared him for the gargantuan creature that took shape before them.

The invader was hideous, with multiple eyes, scaly grey skin, and grotesque thorns protruding from its back and arms. To make things worth, the thing appeared to be able to summon lightning whips.

“To arms!” Cassandra shouted. “Archers, Fire!”

Arrows pelted the monster's hide, but to no avail, as it appeared to be impervious to all damage. In a bizarre echo, Solas and Guidance said at the same time. “Open the rift to make it vulnerable!”. The comedic scandalized look they threw at each other did not go unnoticed by Max, who had to struggle to stay focused and not laugh. Fortunately, tearing the rift open again did the trick and the monster fell to its knees, allowing the close combat units to engage.

With the demon's patterns figured out, it was only a matter of time until they felled it, making the soldiers release a shout in celebration. In contrast, Guidance had a somber demeanor.

“Goodbye. Hopefully, you'll find your purpose once more. I'm sorry it had to end like this.”

Before Maxwell could quiz his friend on what why he was upset, Liliana ordered him to close the breach. He reached out his hand and began zapping the rift. The burden was massive, far more taxing on his body than all the previous rifts combined. After a particularly strong pulse, Maxwell passed out and fell backward, into Guidance's arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello,
> 
> I tried to inject some light-heartedness into this chapter because I'm envisioning Maxwell as a more childish character right now, who will be forced to mature very rapidly. Do you think it made for a more enjoyable read?
> 
> I want to have fun writing this, and occasional funny moments help.
> 
> Writing Liliana's dialogue during the interrogation was what came easiest to me, on this part of the story.
> 
> On the next entry, we'll return to Haven under John's POV, which will enable all sorts of dialogue options.
> 
> Meanwhile, I wish you well.
> 
> See you soon,  
> The_Giraffe.


End file.
